Who's Controling Who NOW?
by Syvia
Summary: Chapter 18 New- A group of Nosgothians appear in the author's home one night to play- what else? Blood Omen. Will there be mayhem? Will there be mindless destruction? But of course!
1. Review Responses

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.....................................................Review Responses......................................................

................................................9/1/03 - 12/31/03................................................

DHA- Yes, Faustus indeed... skips. *smirks* I hadn't thought about what kind of images that would inspire, but I have to agree with that- so what do you say? *grins* You draw better than I do.

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Triple T- Glad you're happy. ^_^

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Sylvanon- Thank you! *chuckles* Indeed. Ew.

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Mark- Ah, well I'm glad you've stopped (it was a bit freaky). ^_^ *wry smile* Sorry if that last bit sounded a bit inane. I remember seeing you refer to yourself in plural in one of my reviews, and since some net names belong to a group surfing the net together, I wondered. Thanks for the review!

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Crown of Rust- Thank you! Hmm... well, I never actually asked them. *turns to Raz*

Raziel- Secrets of the vampire world. Spells and the like. ... Well how else would we wash up? We can't touch water after all.

Syvia- And there you have it. They refuse to answer.

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Lunatic Pandora- Two of those questions will be answered within. ^_^ The other will remain unanswered. I'll give you three guesses at which ones are which- and the first two don't count. Thanks for the review. :-p

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Bloodthirsty- *lol* *applause* Thanks for the review! *pat pat* I don't mind! It's nice to get a review at all! (I myself, am a very bad reviewer.)

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VladimirsAngel- *snickering, hugs her* Thanks for the review! I know he knows you know what look that was of Kain's. ^_^ ..... Uh... Raz? Can we come out now?

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Blood of Angels- Thanks for the review. ^_^

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Tom T. Tom-Tom- *blows a raspberry in your direction* But thanks for the extra two points.

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................................................3/19/03 - 8/31/03................................................

Nemi- *lol* Give that girl a snog, Janos! Nemi, you're definitely the biggest Janos fan I've ever seen & I'm glad you're still reading this. ^_^

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Tanaquil- Hey sweetie! *lol* I'm glad you liked it. :-)

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Concept- Thanks & I hope this chapter makes you laugh.

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Mark- Heh, I wouldn't have tried to get you banned... you as in plural? ... *curious look* How many of 'you' are there anyway? 

Glad you liked the new chapter & I'm hope you're still reading *small grin* but you don't know how odd it was to see ten new review alert emails come with only a number as the message. Please don't do that again, hon.

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Nocturnally-Damned- Thank you. ^_^ *lol* Yes, people keep asking when 'I' am going to have sex with one of the characters. *grins* I could always write a story where that happens, or where I look all-powerful and knock the characters around, but where's the story in that?

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Angel- *grins* That was a fun joke. ^_^ I must remember to go back to that plot bunny later in the fic. It should make for interesting conversation. *wink wink* *hugs back* I'm playing hard-to-get. :-D 

Vorador- I _knew _it! 

Syvia- *hits him* Truthfully, I just can't bear to write it. *lol* This isn't _that _type of story. What type it is, I've no idea, but *shrugs* we'll continue to find out.

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Fallen Templar- *lol* Thanks. ^_^ I have the feeling that Adojan will either surprise people in this fic, or simply justify their reasons for being annoyed at him. We'll just have to see.

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Morbid Knight- *lol* Yes, yes- you're sick of waiting, everyone's sick of waiting. *snickers* And why did he get stuck with Umah? Was it lack of options? Was it that he finally got a good opportunity? Well, no, actually- I just thought it would be funny. ^_^

You're welcome!

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DHA- *snickers* The fighting is always good... even when it's two porcupines against a skunk and the skunk has a flame thrower.

*everyone looks at her oddly* ......... Thanks for the review!

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Raziella D. Reaver- ^_^ Well... I'm not sure yet. :-D It hasn't happened, and there will be some interesting reactions to the *clears throat* makeup.

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Bahamut- *sighs* Thanks for the review, hon.

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DuesExDreams- *shrugs* That's what happens. The muse is, sadly, even more powerful than I am in her own special ways. *Adojan smiles gratefully and waves* I _did _update Restoring Balance. Did you review _that_? Nope. Did you at least _read _it? If not, get your butt over there! ^_^

*snickers* Indeed... that was a shameless plug. 

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Fox-In-Shadows- Thanks!

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Shadowrayne- *gives you a cookie* Thank you. ^_^ And _here _is the addiction. *looks at that* *gasps* I meant addition! Sorry. :-p

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Silent Steel- ^_^ I'm glad you're sticking with my long long, not often updated... long, story. ^_^ *fluffs the fluff* It's such a nice sidebar from the dramatic stories. Thank you!

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Raptor Red- *gasps* I am insulted *rubs her armor-clad back where the whip hit it* and ringing... from those remarks. I didn't to that to Adojan! He tried to do that to me! ^_^ I'm the injured party here!!!!

I can't make you sign in, eh? *waves off the muse, who is looking mutinous and stroking the handle of her own whip, and advances on you with the feather duster 2001* We'll just see about that! *tackles you & tickles with the motorized feather duster* Say uncle! Uncle!!!!!

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Flame of Corruption- O_o But... but I said there would be spoilers, didn't I? *bites her nails* Heh ^_^ and thinking about that, I realize how little I've actually been talking about Blood Omen 2 in the story. Thanks!

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Tom T. Thomson- *chuckles* Thanks, and considering when you reviewed, I hope two months is a long enough respite for ya. ^_^ 

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Raziel's Dark Raven- *grins* I'm not sure that last bit is true, but thanks very much for reviewing and I'm glad you like the fic!

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The man with three of the same initial- Here's a continuation, although I must warn you that it's a full-on miracle if I update the same fic within less than three months. (Unless that fic is part of the LoK Fluff series.)

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Kaya De Crystalline- *grins* Congrats, Kaya- you are the reason I've updated. Good job & I hope you enjoy the new chapter! *lol* Oi, character is too subjective. *mock-gasp* I take offence to that! I _said _they'd be out of character. ^_^ It's all in the pursuit of comedy. 

*pats you on the shoulder* It's okay. You looked pathetic for a good cause. ^_^ Here is an update. 

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12/20/02 - 1/14/03

Raziella D. Reaver- I think so too. ^_^ Here it is.

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DHA- Hmm... maybe he will *smirks* when he wakes up...

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VladimirsAngel- *lol* *gasps* So _that's _the explanation! 

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Fallen Templar- It never happens, buddy. I try though. *sighs*

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Wolfywoman- Uh... at least I _did _update.

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Rocker Baby- *takes out a bat* I'd forgotten I was waiting so long for this. *evil grin* *gives her muse a bat* *muse drags Rocker Baby towards a small room, to the delight of Raz & Kain* *loud thuds & screams can be heard* See... it really isn't a good idea to hurt me in reviews. ^_^

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Concept of a Demon- Okay.

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Nemi- ^_^ 

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GoT- *lol* I like Raz. He's one of the only characters who is sympathetic to... anyone. 

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Tiarne- *grins* Thank _you_.

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Mark- 2. 2. 2. 2. 2. 2. 2. When I feel like it. When I feel like it. I. Don't. Care. I'm working on it. I'm working on it. When I feel like it. When I feel like it. When I feel like it. When I feel like it. When I feel like it. When I feel like it. When I feel like it. When I feel like it. I'm working on it. I'm working on it. *gets extremely annoyed* Review me again & I'm going back to the ban of the anonymous reviews.

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Lunatic Pandora- *shrugs* It worked for me. Thanks ^_^

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Bahamut- *watches the fishing* ...................... *falls asleep*


	2. ‘That’s Right He WAS in Blood Omen'

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, or anything in them.

Authors notes: Just a crazy little idea I had, and wrote down in a very short amount of time. I go occ here for purpose of humor. R&R please! ^_^ ***Spoilers of the LoK games*** 

'That's Right- He _Was_ in Blood Omen!'

Syvia was shaken awake one night by a pair of cloven hands and two insistent, nagging voices. 

"What? Whassamater?" she mumbled. Sitting up in bed, she came face to face with Raziel, the un-decaying Soul Reaver, and Mobius, the eternal Time Streamer of the Circle of Nine. Since it was three in the morning and she was extremely groggy, Syvia didn't find anything wrong with this.

"Come along, my dear," Mobius crooned, "let's get up, put on our robe and slippers and go downstairs."

"Why?" Syvia yawned, allowing the sorcerer to pull her out of bed. Raziel helped the girl into her bathrobe and tied it closed as Mobius used magic to guide a pair of blue slippers onto her feet.

"We need you to teach us how to work your Playstation," Raziel was saying, his voice almost shaking with glee. Grasping one small hand in his talons, he led the girl out of her bedroom. 

"Okay," Syvia murmured, still half asleep. The two from Nosgoth guided their sleepy charge down the hall, down the grey-carpeted steps, and into the game room. 

Syvia, being the videogame fanatic that she is, was so used to turning on her Playstation 2 that she needed no real awareness to get the job done. Still in that groggy state, she turned on the T.V., pushed the input button twice and turned on the game system, all while explaining everything to Mobius and Raziel, who were sitting side by side on her green loveseat. 

"Okay? Is that all you wanted?" Syvia yawned. They nodded happily. Syvia smiled and headed for the doorway, allowing Mobius to lunge forward, grab her copy of Blood Omen and load it into the game system. Syvia handed the controller to Raziel as she walked away. "I'm going back to bed," she said in a vague sort of voice. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight," the boys chorused, eyes fixed on the screen. 

Mobius regained his seat as the opening movie sequence of Blood Omen began to play. He reached for the controller Raziel was holding. The Soul Reaver stretched his left arm away from the Mobius, using his right to keep the Time Streamer on his _own _side of the loveseat. 

"No, no, _I'm _first," Raziel said amusedly. "She gave the controller to _me_."

"So what?" Mobius countered, summoning the controller to his hand with magic. "You weren't even_ in_ Blood Omen."

"Liar, liar-" Raziel sang, plucking the controller from the Sorcerer's hand. "I was in _both_ Blood Omen games," his eyes flared angrily, "as the _sword_." Mobius subsided, crossing his hands over his chest with a pout. 

Raziel happily sat back as the opening sequence started. Mobius lost his pout as the nobleman Kain asked an innkeeper for a mug of ale, an was turned down. He and Raziel were so engrossed in the game that they didn't notice a figure standing behind them in the darkness. 

Both of them gave evil little chuckles as they saw the nobleman impaled upon his own sword by a group of mercenaries. 

"That _does_ bring back memories," the unseen person murmured wryly. Mobius and Raziel jumped, startled, and turned slowly to look behind them. Kain strode around the loveseat and sat down between the ones already sitting on it. "_I'll _take that, thank you, Raziel," he said, snatching the controller away from his first-born. "After all," he smirked, "I _am_ the main character of this game."

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Want more?


	3. Raziel's Temper Tantrum

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, or anything in them.

Authors notes: Just a crazy little idea I had, and wrote down in a very short amount of time. I go occ here for purpose of humor. R&R please! ^_^ ***Spoilers of the LoK games*** Okay, some of you may be offended that I make fun of Razzy during this chapter. *grins* Personally, I think he's _earned _a little whine, but that doesn't mean I'd want to _listen _to it. :p This fic may end up as an MST. *grins* Whether that's a good or a bad thing- well... we'll find out, won't we? };-)

Raziel's Temper Tantrum

Syvia had gotten all the way up to her room, snuggled under the covers, and closed her eyes before she realized the full implications of what had just happened. She opened her eyes slowly, confused before sitting bolt upright in bed. The girl just sat there for a moment, staring wide-eyed into the darkness.

Raziel turned idly in his seat when he heard footsteps pounding down the stairs. Syvia appeared in the doorway, with flushed cheeks and an amazed expression when she saw him still sitting on the loveseat. Mobius turned and caught sight of her. 

"Ah, come in, my dear, no need to be shy," he said fawningly. 

"Ah yes, Mobius, get into her good graces quickly," Kain sneered, eyes on the television screen. "Perhaps she'll give you an extra turn later on." Syvia grinned a bit nervously at the vampire's words, but stayed by the door.

"Uh... where did you three come from?" 

"Nosgoth, of course," Raziel informed her, turning back to the television.

"Yeah, I figured that part out," Syvia murmured. "And as," she searched for the correct word, "_delighted _as I am that you've come to... visit-" _Oh please God, tell me they won't be staying long, _she thought fervently, "how did you get here, and _why_ are you here?"

"We came through a Time Streaming Chamber, courtesy of my _humble _self," Mobius smiled. Syvia shivered in disgust. "We only wanted to play your lovely little video games and-"

"Mobius-" Raziel interrupted in scathing tones, "she's played the games. She knows about your act. You can drop it now- before you make me vomit," he added tersely.

"As if you _had _anything to vomit," Kain put in, smirking. 

Raziel turned to him with narrowed eyes. "Can we leave off the stomach jokes until _after _Blood Omen, please?" Kain only chuckled darkly.

Syvia, smiling just a bit, wandered in. Keeping her eyes on the visitors at all times, she pulled her computer chair away from her desk and lowered herself into it. She sat there nervously, her eyes flickering to the T.V., then to the trio on her couch, then to the T.V.-

"I don't bite, you know," Kain murmured, smirking.

Raziel laughed harshly. "Well we all know _that's _a lie." Kain rolled his eyes in annoyance and turned to his dead- now _twice _dead- son. 

"What _is_ your problem?" he asked the Soul Reaver. Mobius, seeing Kain distracted, slipped the controller out of the Vampire Lord's hand and started playing the game.

"My problem?" Raziel repeated. "My _problem_?! _I have several_!!! Crystal Dynamics creates two games about me, both of which should have been _longer_, Eidos keeps pushing back the release dates of _all_ our games, by the end of SR2 I realize that my human self was a bastard, my vampire self wasn't much better- I'm left in contemplation of my impending future as a _sword_, wielded by _you_ I might add. Not the most joyous of thoughts, and-"

Mobius, still watching the television, began a mocking temper-tantrum. "Wahhhhh, I'm going to be imprisoned in a sword for the rest of my existence- I was moronic sword-swinger in my human life, a boot-licker in my vampire life, a I'm a whiny little baby in _this _one." Kain began to laugh, Syvia tried desperately to stifle her giggles, and if looks could kill, Mobius would have been struck dead a dozen times over.

The Raziel rushed the Time Streamer, his talons at Mobius' throat, pinning him against the wall. Mobius held on to the Playstation controller for a second too long, and the taunt cord jerked the system from its resting place, causing the disk to skip.

That did it.

Syvia surged up from her chair and pried Raziel off of the sorcerer, who gratefully refilled his lungs.

"Look, _buddy_- fan girl I _may_ be, but that damn thing cost me _three hundred _dollars." Syvia got up in Raziel's face, poking the cold, lifeless blue flesh of his chest angrily. "So if you want to play it, _sit_ down, _shut_ up, and _no more fighting_!" Then she suddenly remembered who she was talking to. Syvia's eyes widened. Her gaze moved to Kain and Mobius, who looked amused and shocked, respectively. Raziel was looking at her, too bewildered to be annoyed. _Okay girl, _Syvia thought to herself, _you've put your foot in it, but you can't back down now._

"Or if you feel the need to fight," she said, keeping her voice stern, "do it _out_ of the game room."

Raziel looked at Kain and Mobius, then back at Syvia. "Fine," he agreed amiably, sitting back down.

"So-" Kain said, changing the subject, "is it broken?" Syvia knelt on the floor, making an effort to keep from shaking, and checked the Playstation 2 over. Finding that it was in tact, she reset the game and reclaimed her chair. Kain took up the controller again and they watched the introduction in silence.

Syvia chanced a look at Raziel and found him watching her. "What?" she asked apprehensively. 

"You say you're a fan girl?" he asked, a smirk in his voice.

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Oh! Next time I _promise _I'll get into actual dialogue from the game! ^_^ R&R please! 


	4. Better Graphics

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, or anything in them. The only things I do own are myself and Zofia Audron. Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel*

Authors notes: Just a crazy little idea I had, and wrote down in a very short amount of time. I go occ here for purpose of humor. R&R please! ^_^ ***Spoilers of the LoK games*** This fic may end up as an MST, but probably not. *grins* Whether that's a good or a bad thing- well... we'll find out, won't we? };-)

Better Graphics

"You say you're a fan girl?" Raziel asked, one eyebrow quirking in amusement. 

"I, well- well, uh..." Syvia spluttered, trying to think of a safe answer. "Yes?" she answered timidly. 

"And who's your favorite character?" he asked in a wheedling tone. 

Syvia glanced at Kain and Mobius, who were now paying attention. She gave a short laugh. "I am _not_ answering that question."

"Aw, come on!" Raziel said, his voice laced with humor. "It's me, isn't it? I have two games out to Kain's one. You've spent more _time_ with me."

Kain laughed, his taloned 'thumbs' flicking across the controller. "My game was longer and had more replay value than both of yours combined, Raziel. Besides... Blood Omen 2 will be out before long."

Raziel ignored him, still looking at Syvia. "Alright, don't answer then, your garment speaks for itself." Mobius looked over at them at these words, confused.

"What?" Syvia cried in an aggravated tone. She looked down at her sky-blue robe, patterned with clouds. "So blue is my favorite color- so what?"

Raziel gestured to his skinless body, the blue muscles covering white bone. "I rest my case," he said. "Everybody loves me."

"Keep telling yourself that, Raziel," Kain smirked. Then he laughed as the game emitted a scream, even though that scream was from his own character.

"Oh please, she loves _me_," Mobius scoffed. Syvia scoffed in response. "What?" the Time Streamer asked defensively. "You don't?" he murmured, his voice growing soft, dangerous.

_Oh shit,_ Syvia thought, _enter Manipulator Mobius, Time Streamer of Destruction. _"I, love to _hate_ you..." Syvia murmured in an placatory tone. This seemed to appease the Pillar Guardian, who smiled and settled back into his side of the loveseat. 

Kain's underworld FMV began, showing the young human shackled to two poles above a lake of magma. "And now the obligatory S&D sex scene," Raziel murmured. The Soul Reaver suddenly lurched forward, having been smacked upside the head by- 

"Mortanius?" Mobius blurted out, amazed as the Pillar of Death strode into the light cast by Syvia's television. "What are you doing here?"

"Is this a private party?" he rumbled ominously, fixing Syvia with the white sockets that served as his eyes.

"No! No, no, no, no, no-" she assured him, smiling nervously.

"What's the matter?" Raziel asked her, rubbing his head. He didn't understand why she seemed so afraid of the Guardian.

"You don't recognize his _voice_?" Syvia whispered, shocked. Kain nodded once in understanding, his face tense. Raziel looked confused, and turned back to the television. The videogame Kain came upon a Heart of Darkness.

"Reputed to have been ripped from the chest of the greatest vampire to have ever existed, Janos Audron, the Heart of Darkness restores vampiric unlife. Life is precious, Janos discovered - as it was torn throbbing and bleeding from his own body," the videogame recited. 

"Did I hear someone mention my name?" a heavily accented voice asked.

"Janos!?" Syvia and Raziel shouted in unison. The blue-skinned Ancient appeared behind the love seat and gingerly sat down in a rocking chair. Mortanius, looking disgustedly at him, conjured a chair of bones and settled into it.

"What's wrong?" Janos asked.

Kain answered for them. "I thought you did not appear until Soul Reaver 2."

"Ah, but you spoke of me in relation to the Heart, and so I am able to join you."

"Oh, for the love of God, does that mean we can expect everyone to arrive sooner or later?" Mobius said, exasperated.

"Don't look at me," Syvia said, putting her hands up. "You're the one who started all this.

The videogame Kain killed his enemies with ruthless efficiency, and began to speak. "There is no greater release than that from vengeance sated. With my assassins dead, my quest was over."

Kain snickered. "To end it right there- wouldn't that have been a short game? I want to ask you something, Syvia." The girl flinched. "Which do you think looked better; the Kain of Blood Omen or the Kain of Soul Reaver."

"Soul Reaver," Syvia answered fervently, "definitely Soul Reaver." The Nosgothians all turned to look at her.

"Why?" Janos asked curiously. 

Syvia grinned. "Better graphics," she stated in a matter-of fact tone. 

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*Syvia walks out into the endless white room of the space between fan fic chapters*

Syvia- Hey guys- it's the beginning of my shameless plugs!!!!!! *falls to her knees* Oh pleaseeeeeee review!!!!!! *sobs theatrically* 

*A young female Ancient walks out, puts an arm around Syvia's shoulders, making shushing noises*

Zofia- It's okay Syvie, it's okay. *the other characters from WCWN poke their heads out of a plot hole and look at the two in confusion*

Raziel- Janos? Who is that?

Janos- Um... how would I know?

Raziel- She's of your race.

Janos- I've never seen her before.

Mobius- Depends entirely upon what fics you've been reading.

Syvia- Why, Zofie? Why? I thought I wrote a summary that would draw people in! Why haven't I gotten any reviews yet? 

Zofia- Um... maybe you should be revising more before you update the stories?

Mortanius- I beg your pardon- what are you two speaking of? 

Syvia- *drying her tears* Meet Zofia Audron. *the ancient waves a slim blue hand- the boys look confused* Zofia Audron? Janos' _daughter_ in the 'Restoring Balance' fic I've written?

All the guys except Janos- _You have a daughter_!?

Janos- _I have a daughter_!?

*Zofia slaps a hand to her forehead, Syvia starts crying harder*

Syvia- See? No one has read it!!!!!

Zofia- Well, is that going to make you stop writing? 

Syvia- *thinks about it* ...No. But I want some validation, damnit! *stands up and looks out at the readers* Please, people? Give me some input? And to all of you who have read this one & reviewed it- *massive hugs to all of them* 

*turns to Zofia* Say- would you like to be in this fic? 

Zofia- *looks doubtful* Well, I'm not in any of the games...

Raziel- Why the hell not? We could use a few more ladies in the fic. *leers at Raziel* 

Mobius- Uh... you're leering at yourself?

Raziel- What? No! I was leering at Zofia!

Zofia- (to Syvia) See? This is the revision thing I'm talking about.

Syvia- I see your point. Anyway- *marches up to Raziel* None of that! *slaps him upside the head a second before Janos does the same*

Janos- That's my daughter, blue boy.

Raziel- You didn't even know about her until just now!

*They continue to fight. Zofia turns to the readers, sighs, rolls her eyes.*

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*Bats her eyelashes* Yeah, I admit, I'd like more reviews- but what just passed was also a ploy for more laughs. Did it work? 

^_^ Thought so. 


	5. Syvia Loses It

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, or anything in them. The only things I do own are myself and Zofia Audron. Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel*

Authors notes: Just a crazy little idea I had, and wrote down in a very short amount of time. I go ooc here for purpose of humor. The funny thing about it is- I go ooc with myself more than anyone else! *lol*

R&R please! ^_^ ***Spoilers of the LoK games*** This fic may end up as an MST, but probably not. *grins* Whether that's a good or a bad thing- well... we'll find out, won't we? };-)

Oh my God, DHA, I didn't think of that. *stares off into the distance with a horrified expression on her face* Ohhh my God.

Oh! *throws a bucket of cookies at Nemi* That's for reminding me to bash BO2's Kain! ^_^ Thank _youuuuu_!

Yes, I just keep copying the same Disclaimer & Author's notes again and again and again-

*Mobius appears & slaps Syvia upside the head* Ow! Damnit. Tch, fine, let's go then.

Syvia Loses It

"Well, anyway, welcome to the group, Zofie," Syvia smiled warmly at the Ancient. Zofia returned the smile and looked about for a seat. The winged one noticed Mobius smiling at her and Raziel leering, well- leering as best as he could with half a face. She shuddered in reaction to both and perched on an arm of Janos' rocking chair.

"So, answer my question," Mobius repeated. 

"Sure," Syvia nodded. "_What _question?"

Mobius rolled his milk-white eyes. "Is _everyone_ going to arrive as we progress through the games?"

Syvia sighed, "Like I said- _you_ started this whole thing. _I_ have no clue." Raziel began to laugh for no reason at all. 

Mortanius turned to him. "What?"

Kain smirked. "Oh nothing- he's just finally snapped is all. It was bound to happen one of these days."

"What- what will happen," Raziel said between peals of laughter, "when we start Soul Reaver and the Lieutenants get here?" Janos grinned openly while Zofia hid a smile. Kain grinned evilly. The Pillars of Time and Death just sat there, impassively. Syvia stared off into the distance, a horrified look on her face.

"Oh. My. God," she whispered. "This is _not_ good."

"Oh, come now," Kain smirked at her. "It'll be fun. One of them is sure to find some alcohol, they'll all get drunk and make fools of themselves. The current Raziel will be so jealous of his former self's good looks that he'll go off to sulk." At this- Raziel stopped laughing. 

"I'm sorry?" he asked stonily. 

"Vampires are able to get drunk?" Zofia interrupted curiously. 

"Oh my God!" Syvia cried out, distracting them. "What about their mutated forms!?" she asked frantically. 

Raziel looked intrigued at this. "Well I never _did_ get to see Turel during Soul Reaver 1."

"Forget about that!" she cried. "I don't have enough room to fit Melchiah or Zephon in here, and I don't have the room _or _the _water_ to fit Rahab!" At this, Mobius actually looked concerned. 

"Oh- uh- well..." Mobius looked around speculatively. 

"We'll destroy that obstacle when we come to it," Raziel said. Syvia looked at him strangely. He seemed to be trying to comfort her.

"Oh dear," Janos murmured. They all looked at him, aside from Kain, who kept his eyes on the television.

"'Oh dear'?" Syvia asked fretfully. "'Oh dear' _what_, Janos?!"

"What are we going to do during Soul Reaver 2 when the _Sarafan_ versions of the Lieutenants appear?" Zofia's eyes widened.

"I think that scenario sounds much more dire than 'Oh dear', father," she said. Mobius, on the other hand, began to laugh hysterically, along with Kain and Raziel. Mortanius just sat there, about as apathetic as one can get.

"We could build a fighting ring," Mobius cried, gasping for breath, "and let them kill themselves off!"

"This is _serious_, damnit!" Syvia shouted at them. "None of _you _may _give _a shit, but I'm worried about what's going to happen when I get twelve videogame characters in here who are basically sworn to kill one another! If there'll be a house to stand in by the time they're done, I'll die of shock!"

"If they haven't already killed you in the crossfire," Mortanius put in coolly. Syvia glared at him, picked up her desk lamp and, losing her head completely- proceeded to beat Mortanius over the head with it. The Pillar of Death sat there and took the blows, not moving an inch. The desk lamp broke, but Syvia just kept swinging. The Nosgothians looked on with a kind of detached amazement at her stamina. Kain paused the game idly, deciding that, at the moment, Syvia was _much _more entertaining. 

Mortanius examined his nails... or rather the tips of his bony fingers, placed his hand back on the arm of his chair. Syvia kept going. 

Finally the girl got tired, stumbled back a step or two and dropped back onto her chair.

"Feel better?" Mortanius asked flatly. Syvia nodded, too winded to speak. "Good." He waved a hand at Kain. "Continue." Kain un-paused the game and they all sat there for a few moments.

"Well what about Blood Omen 2 then?" Kain asked, breaking the silence. Then he swore as he died in the game and was revived by a Heart of Darkness. 

"Kain, you're not paying attention- let someone else have a turn," Mortanius said irritably. Kain handed the controller over to him with no complaints and turned to Syvia.

"What _about_ Blood Omen 2?" Raziel asked.

"Which Kain is better? After all, the graphics of Blood Omen 2 are _at least_ as good as those of Soul Reaver 2," Kain responded.

Syvia shook her head. "I still like you better from Soul Reaver. Lots of fans do." Several of the visitors seemed curious about her claim.

"Why?" 

The girl shrugged. "Continuity. I mean, look at the guy from Blood Omen 2," she said. Syvia pulled out the case of SR2, took out the instruction manual and turned it over, showing them a promotional ad for Kain's second game. "Look at him and compare him to the guy from Blood Omen 1," she said, gesturing to the television screen. "Uh, Mortanius- could you go to the inventory screen for me?" she asked politely. The Guardian did so. "See? He loses the widow's peak, and where the hell is his scar?!" 

"Scar?" several people asked, looking at the television screen and the promo. "What scar are you talking about?" Syvia smacked a hand to her forehead and pointed to the visiting Kain's chest.

"_That_ scar. We fans all assumed that he'd gotten it when the brigands from Blood Omen killed him. He still has it during Soul Reaver- so why isn't it in Blood Omen 2?"

"How can you be so sure about the scar's origin?" Mobius asked. 

"Vampires don't scar," Raziel answered. "Any scar on a vampire's body had to have been made while the vampire was human."

"I don't know," Mobius smirked. "_You _look pretty scarred." Raziel reached out and slapped the Time Streamer upside the head. 

"But _Kain's_ scar, was made by a _blade_," he answered derisively.

"We can ask him where the scar went when he gets here," Zofia interrupted.

"How are we going to do that?" Janos asked. "Blood Omen 2 isn't out yet."

"Well, who knows," Syvia said wryly. "Chances are good I'll still be writing this by the time it's supposed to come out." 

"Soul Reaver 2 has a demo of Blood Omen 2," Zofia said, chuckling. "He may appear _then_. Umah too, perhaps."

"We'll find out," Mobius sighed. "It's only a matter of time." He grinned as all assembled groaned loudly.

=========================

Remember- R&R! ;-p


	6. Suspicions of Insanity

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, or anything in them. Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel* Zofie Audron alone, is my brain child. I, of course, belong to myself. ^_^

Author's Notes: If you read- review! ^_^ ***Spoilers of the LoK games (duh!)***

Okay, going in depth with the reviews here;

Thank you; 

Bahumut- Thanks for sticking with me- I love you too man!!!!!! *grins* 

DHA- *Hugs DHA* Thankyouthankyou! You've given me funny reviews and good inspiration! 

Dragonclaw- *hugs Dragonclaw* Thank you *grins* I'm working on it! 

Expert Predator- Um... you're a little scary- but anything that gets me to write more is good! *lmao* 

Honlei of the Inferno- *blushes* Awww, dangit! I just hope I can keep it up! Thank you.

Nemi- Again- thank you for reminding me to dis BO2 Kain! I too am a Janos fan, *grins* as well as others! 

Psi Yamaneko- *lol* *High-fives the Mobius fan* Like I said- I _love_ to hate him! _LOVE_to hate him! *snickers* 

Edward, Ghost, Haruka-Chan, Kiwi, Ksher, Krow Love, Miss Sedusa, Marie, Seishin, Venris13 - *grins* Thank you all soooooo much for your support and for asking me for more!

Thanks, thanks, thanks, thanks!

Wow... it seems like I _never _get away from the drama. *lol* This chapter delves into a little bit of angst, but that's okay, cause I won't do it very often!

Suspicions of Insanity

"Question-" Raziel put in suddenly, "why _isn't_ the fledgling Kain here?" 

"Why should he be?" Kain asked derisively. "_I'm _here. That's more than enough." 

"Given a choice, which would you rather have?" Syvia asked, slightly annoyed. Without hesitation Raziel, Mobius and Mortanius answered, "The fledgling."

"Why?"

"He was still young enough to be deluded then," Mobius sighed, remembering. 

"Exactly," Mortanius agreed.

"Were he a fledgling, I would be able to kill him," Raziel said shrugging.

"What makes you so sure?" Kain asked with a dangerous look.

"You could kill him _now_ if you'd get off your arse and make an effort," Mobius was saying acidly. Raziel's arm began to glow softly, calling up the wraith blade as he glared at the other two on the loveseat.

"Hey- hey guys-" Syvia put in, trying to diffuse the situation. "You know- um..." her voice grew a little more frantic, seeing they were about to exchange blows. "Fighting never really solves anything!" she cried lamely. They all froze and looked at her. 

Mortanius was too apathetic to laugh- the rest, with the exception of Zofia and Janos, who were actually applauding her, doubled over, crying with mirth. Syvia's cheeks burned. 

_Well,_ she thought, _there isn't much chance of me saying anything more stupid than_ that _tonight_. The girl mumbled something about getting some popcorn and left the room. When she got out of sight, she found that they'd actually been trying to spare her feelings, because they got louder. Loud enough that she could hear everything in the game room _from _the kitchen.

"Damnit," she murmured, pulling out a bag of microwave popcorn. "What the hell is this anyway? There have to be lots of LoK fans in the US... no the _world_, who are a hell of a lot more hardcore than I am." She pulled the plastic sleeve off the bag, punched the microwave button, threw the bag in leaned her head on the machine. "Why me?" she asked tiredly.

"You _did_ stop them from fighting."

Syvia jumped and turned. "Don't _do_ that!" she cried at Zofia. 

The Ancient smiled slightly. "I am sorry. But the fact remains- you kept them from fighting. Things are not all that bad." 

Syvia laughed harshly. "They can always get worse," the girl replied. Zofia shook her head gently as the girl tapped a few buttons on the microwave.

"What an optimist you are," she chuckled.

"No, I'm a _realist_," Syvia smirked. Then Kain appeared in the doorway behind Zofia.

"You wouldn't happen to have any blood in your icebox, would you?" he smirked, knowing the answer. Syvia looked at Zofia as if to say, 'didn't I tell you?' before giving Kain an icy glare.

"No, there isn't any in the 'icebox' and there are no donors in _this _house," Syvia told him sternly.

"Pity," Kain said, pouting slightly. He walked to her backdoor, smiling. "Well then, I'll just have to pop over to the neighbors, won't I?" Syvia's eyes widened, her mouth dropped open, and she raised a finger at the vampire. Had she actually said anything, she might have been able to stop him, but she just stared, dumbfounded as Kain opened her backdoor and walked out into the night.

Zofia watched, and nibbled her lower lip. She looked back at Syvia. "To quote my father- 'Oh dear'," she said.

Syvia's mouth shut with a snap. "To quote _you- _'This scenario is a bit more dire than 'Oh dear'." Then she thought about it more. "Well... it's not as if I actually _like_ the neighbors. Maybe he'll make a snack of their dog," she said dully.

"_Syvia_," the Ancient frowned reproachfully at her.

"Zofie- you shouldn't _be _here," Syvia said, almost pleadingly. "_None_ of you should be here! My _parents _are asleep upstairs. It's three in the morning and I have classes tomorrow," the microwave beeped and Syvia reached reflexively for the 'open' button. 

"I've got a group of videogame characters in my game room, one of which," she said, taking out the popcorn, "is, at this very moment, going next door to drink one of my neighbors' blood. I think I'm going insane right now," she said, shooting Zofia a heated glare. "So forgive me my odd, possibly heartless sounding comments." 

Syvia held the bag out in front of her and opened it. Steam rose into the air, and a face appeared in it.

"You are not going crazy," it said. Syvia screamed and jumped back. Popcorn went everywhere as she collided with Zofia and the two of them went down in a heap of tangled limbs and black feathers. 

The Nosgothian men (and assorted other species) appeared in the doorway, asking what was the matter. The girls had both fallen on their backs, Syvia lying full on one of Zofia's black wings. The girl attempted to get up, apologizing profusely, but Zofia grabbed her arms, holding her still. 

"I do not think I have broken anything- but if you move, that could change," the Ancient said carefully. Syvia looked around and gulped. They were wedged between the table and the refrigerator, Zofia's back and her right wing were pressed against the kitchen table, her right wing was extended on the floor, pinned by their combined weight.

"Alright, stay still, both of you," Raziel said. He leapt easily over the table, leaned down and pulled Syvia to her feet. The girl backed away, finally noticing the one who had startled her.

"I am _very_ sorry," Ariel murmured. Syvia stared wide-eyed at the specter as Janos lifted the kitchen table. Raziel took Zofia's hands, supporting the Ancient's weight as she re-folded her wings. Zofia stood up and Janos replaced the kitchen table. The human girl paid no attention; studying the former Pillar of Balance with an awe that held no small amount of fear. 

Ariel's face was, in person, much more alarming and... _upsetting_, than anything the video graphics could produce. Half of the spirit's face was pale white bone. Skinless, clean, but the ragged tear between it and the human half of her face was anything but. There was blood and sinew visible between the covered part of her skull, and what covered it. 

Syvia stared while a little corner of her brain was saying how rude she was being, and 'you'd have thought that the other characters would be worse to look at than poor Ariel.' The girl found herself answering that she couldn't help it. That the others looked either to alien, or were familiar enough, that she wasn't frightened by their appearances. But Ariel... her face was a mix of the acceptable and the unbearable. Half was completely human; the other was absolutely _not_.

Syvia's vision swam. "I guess Mortanius got to the Pillars," she mumbled. Then she fainted. 

"Rebecca? Rebecca!" a voice was calling. 

The girl who was also known as Syvia flinched and opened her eyes. She blinked several times and focused on the bleary-eyed face of her mother. 

"Are you okay?" Her mother's expression was concerned, but also somewhat annoyed. Syvia put a hand to the back of her head, wincing.

"I think so," she murmured. The girl sat up gingerly; wincing again as her mother began to probe at the bump on the back of her head. 

"What happened?" her mother asked. "We heard you scream and came down. The backdoor's open; there's popcorn all over the place-"

"The television's on," her father added from the doorway. The memory of Ariel's face and the videogame characters came back. Syvia looked into her mother's eyes, her shock-induced calm wearing off, and started to shake. 

"What is it?" her mother said, more urgently this time. "_What_?" 

"I-" Syvia began. She gulped in a breath and started to laugh shakily. "I thought I saw a ghost."

"You _what_?" her mother murmured. 

Syvia nodded. "I was up, playing Blood Omen, I went to make some popcorn and I thought I saw a ghost."

"Rebecca." Syvia could tell her mother was trying to sound stern, but couldn't quite manage it in the face of her daughter's anxiety. "Why did you open the backdoor?" 

"The garbage can was full..." Syvia whispered a quick lie. "I was going to take it out."

"It's three in the morning; don't you have class tomorrow?" her mother asked, her anger overtaking her concern in that moment. "Turn the game off and go to _bed_," she said tersely. She pulled Syvia to her feet and turned to shut the door. 

Syvia walked nervously up to her father, afraid of what she'd see in the game room. He looked at her curiously, squinting in the light of the kitchen. Syvia turned and breathed a sigh of relief at the empty loveseat. She ran to the Playstation 2, pulled the game out and turned the system off. 

"Get that in the morning," she heard her mother yawning. Syvia turned her TV off and walked back into the kitchen. Her father was propping a broom against the wall; the popcorn had been swept into a little circle in the center of the kitchen floor.

They stamped up the stairs, Syvia in the lead. The girl walked into her bedroom, pulled off her robe and slippers, got under her covers and eventually fell asleep.

==========================================

*grins* A brief respite ~_^ ... for Syvia, anyway. *lol, strikes pose* This is _not_ the end!

Questions about 'Rebecca'? Okay. As I say in my bio, that _is_ my name. *lol* What? You think my mother ever calls me 'Syvia'? But I have issues with giving any names other than _mine_ out, so my mom and dad will remain 'mom' and 'dad'.


	7. Remind Me Who’s Dream This Is?

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, or anything in them. Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel* Zofie Audron alone, is my brain child. I, of course, belong to myself. ^_^

Author's Notes: If you read- review! ^_^ ***Spoilers of the LoK games (duh!)***

Yet another shameless plug on behalf of a desperate authoress. If you're enjoying this fic, you may also like to read _Blood Omen- The Blooper Reel_ (in progress), which is also humor. If you like things that have a bit more length (although not many people seem to) and depth, please go for _Restoring Balance_ (in progress). If you're not into length, try _Ariel's Sorrow_ (on hold). 

Of my other fics, none take up a space within the Legacy of Kain universe. But they are _Getting in Touch With Your Worm_ (completed) which is a fic based on the movie _Labyrinth_, _Back to Nibelheim_ (completed)- a poetry fic about FF7 (I know, I know, no one reads poetry. *sighs* Neither do I really.) Remembrances (on hold)- a songfic/ficfic of FF8, and _Garr VS Ryu_ (on hold)- a ficlet set in the world of Breath Of Fire 3.

You can also look in fictionalley. org for _Harry Potter and the Rocky Horror Picture Show_ (in progress).

*looks up* Mostly in progress... *she grins* like my life. 

Remind Me Who's Dream This Is?

By the next morning Syvia had, as humans often do, managed to pass last night's experience off as a very odd dream. 

She should have known better.

The girl got up, ate breakfast, took a shower, and got dressed. She left her house, casting a curious glance at the ambulance parked in front of her next door neighbor's house before walking down the street to catch a bus. 

Her college classes passed in a normal, orderly fashion, and she deliberately _didn't_ think about her videogames. It snowed later in the day. When she finally got home, she was cold, tired, slightly damp from the snow that had collected on her coat, and aching from carrying her full book bag. 

"Snow in mid-March," she grumbled softly. She stood in the open front door, un- buckled, snapped, and zipped her winter coat, then shook it off while standing on the porch. She stepped in, emptied her sopping backpack and dropped it on the floor. Syvia pulled off her shoes and ran upstairs. 

She exchanged her jeans for a pair of velvet lounge pants and her shirt and vest for a sweat shirt that clashed horribly with the pants. Over it all she pulled an old pink bathrobe. 

In the bathroom, she took two small hair ties and pulled her bangs back from her face in a hairstyle that was reminiscent of Sailor Moon, but in a much darker hair color, with not as much hair, and no actual 'meatballs'. Needless to say, her outfit and hairdo plainly advertised that she was not expecting company.

Syvia made herself a plate of nachos and had eaten half of them before she noticed the answering machine blinking. The girl hurried into the living room, set the plate down on an end table and pushed the 'play' button. After the characteristic 'beep'- 

"Hi, this is Mark from Electronics Boutique in Century III, for Rebecca; Your copy of Blood Omen 2 is in and must be picked up before the end of the business day tomorrow. If you have any questions you can call-" Syvia took down the number with a wide grin on her face. The message ended with another 'beep' and the tape rewound. 

"Yes!" she shouted, pumping a fist in the air. A little dance of elation and several squeals of excitement later she walked calmly into the game room with her nachos and sat down at her computer. She worked on school assignments for a time, went on the Internet, and did other things that she normally did. After a while, her eyes strayed to her Playstation. Her copy of Blood Omen rested on the system's black plastic exterior. The controller lay invitingly stretched out before the television stand.

Syvia looked at it. _What are you afraid of?_ _It was just a dream,_ she told herself. She turned off her computer, turned slowly in her chair and stared at the game. 

"Well," she murmured. "I should play it a little before playing Blood Omen 2... just to get back into the storyline...." Syvia had made up her mind, but her body wouldn't seem to agree. She sat in the chair, staring at the CD case. 

_Get a grip, girl. It was only a dream._ But a flutter of apprehension grew in her stomach as she turned on the television. Fighting it down in annoyance, Syvia eased the disc into the PS2's tray and pushed the button. 

She looked around hurriedly, sighed in relief. There was no one there. She got up, holding the controller in her hands, and backed up in the direction of the loveseat. The service graphics of the PS2 were coming to life on her television as she sat down without looking. Her legs and rear-end did not find the cushions of the loveseat, they lowered onto something warm... and alive. 

Syvia screamed, jumping up. She whirled around and saw Raziel and Mobius sitting on her loveseat, in exactly the same place they had been last night, they were laughing.

"Oh no, please, you can sit here," Mobius chortled, patting his lap.

"I must be honest," Raziel said, "I didn't think you were going to actually pick up the controller yourself. I thought we'd have to coax you again."

Mobius let out a harrumph; "I manipulated Kain into destroying his own race and I manipulated _you_ into killing Janos Audron. I am fully capable of manipulating a fan-girl into playing a _game_."

Raziel, of course, grew angry at the mention of the Ancient. "I never _did_ repay you for that, Time Streamer..."

"You two were a dream!" Syvia shouted, distracting the two. They smiled- well, Mobius did, Raziel's eyes just kind of... crinkled.

"I don't feel like a dream," Raziel said, patting down his chest and arms as if making sure they were real. He looked at Mobius. "Do _you_ feel like a dream?"

The Pillar of Time grinned. "Not really."

"But if _I'm _not a dream, and _you're _not a dream-" he gasped and looked at Syvia. "Maybe _you're _a dream!" The girl sank into her computer chair and covered her face with her hands.

"Don't even try it Raziel. 'I think, therefore I am.' The fact is indubitable."

"Well, _I _think," Raziel said reasonably. "So doesn't it stand to reason that _I am _as well?"

"No, because I only perceive that you _believe_ that you think, and perceptions _can _be doubted."

Raziel looked at Mobius, who nodded. "She's right," the Time Streamer said confidently. Raziel continued to look confused.

"I suppose I'll take your word for it," he told Mobius.

Syvia laughed harshly. "That'll be a first." Mobius laughed uproariously. Raziel nodded once in wry agreement.

================================================

Ahhhh, the next chapter finished. A review for the nice author ladies & gents? *holds out her hat and bats her eyelashes*


	8. Changing Faces

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, or anything in them. Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel* Zofie Audron alone, is my brain child. I, of course, belong to myself. ^_^

Author's Notes: If you read- review! ^_^ ***Spoilers of **_all_** the LoK games- **_All. When I say all I mean ALL. This may include Blood Omen 2!!!!_*****

*lmao* To clarify the way I did this- See- I have certain issues with the LoK games. I absolutely _love_ to play them and speculate about the stories, but there are bits and pieces that I've always had problems with. This fic started out as a way for me to rant ^_^ and got such a great response that I just had to continue it. I'm glad you're all still having fun. :-D

Changing Faces

"You _can_ sit here," Mobius told her as Blood Omen's main menu appeared on the television.

"No I can't, I don't trust you," Syvia told him matter-of-factly. 

"I'm insulted," the Time Streamer responded, pouting.

"No you're not," Syvia and Raziel replied in unison. 

"Open the file with the least hours completed," Raziel instructed Syvia as she went into the options menu. "Mortanius saved a file before we left last night."

Syvia followed his suggestion and thought of something. "What happened after I fainted? And why are you the only two here?"

"We heard your parents coming downstairs and ran out your back door. Simple. After you turned the game off, we left. As for the other question..." Mobius paused, trading a glance with Raziel. "The others will appear when you begin the game."

"You're sure about that?" the girl asked, looking from one to the other. "You keep saying you're in control here- but you never seem to know exactly what's going on."

Mortanius appeared out of thin air, sitting in his seat of bones. He held a hand out for the game controller, which Syvia surrendered without complaint. "You say you've played the games, Syvia. You should know that Mobius never reveals all he knows. He appears addled to lull people into a false sense of security." 

"What the hell good would making me feel secure do?" Syvia asked. 

"Make you livelier at least," Raziel said humorously. "Mobius and I were there to watch your reaction to the message about Blood Omen 2."

She flushed, eyes narrowing. "Were you also watching when I was upstairs?"

"Raziel wouldn't let me see anything," Mobius pouted. 

"Yes, but did _he_ see anything?" Zofia asked, walking in, arms crossed over her chest. Janos walked in behind her and sat down in the rocking chair. 

"No!" Raziel protested. The winged woman lifted one thin eyebrow. Raziel quailed under her gaze. "I saw her back. That was it." Syvia shivered. "She moved out of sight before she removed anything interesting." Zofia slapped him upside the head. "Ow! What?"

"That was for looking _at all_," she answered.

"Hit him again for me," Ariel said, drifting in. Zofia obliged with a smirk. Raziel to sighed idly and put a hand up to fix his hair. Syvia watched Mobius and Mortanius exchange a look that plainly said 'women' and her lips quirked.

"Well that ends my feeling of ever being alone in my own house," Syvia murmured, smiling tentatively at Ariel, carefully not looking at the middle of the specter's face. She looked around. "So everyone is here but Kain? What's keeping him?"

"I don't feel like coming out," a voice called from the shadows. They all turned around and peered into the darkness beyond the door to the living room.

"What is the matter, Kain?" Ariel called. "Not your usual handsome self?" 

The return answer was wry. "Not exactly."

Raziel laughed. "Well come out then, make me feel better about my own appearance." 

Kain laughed in response. "If anything, I think this will make you feel worse, Raziel," he said, stepping into the light. Jaws dropped around the room. The ladies' eyes became as wide as saucers. Kain looked at Syvia. "Do you still prefer Soul Reaver's Kain to Blood Omen's?"

"Uh..." she stared at ghostly pale vampire before her. "You-" she cleared her throat, "you're still missing the scar." Kain smirked. "What is this, Mobius?" Syvia asked, turning to the Time Streamer. "I don't even _have_ Blood Omen 2 yet. Why does he look like that?"

"Don't look at me," the Pillar of Time protested.

"That's right," Kain chuckled, "I'm _far_ more attractive."

"_I'll _say," Zofia murmured. They all turned to the young Ancient, who blushed. "I mean- uh-" 

"Does this mean I can take off my vest?" Janos grinned, cutting through his daughter's stammering. 

"No it doesn't," Zofia laughed, grateful for the change in topic.

"What did that mean?" Syvia asked, looking at them.

"I too have a part in the second Blood Omen," Janos chuckled. "But although Kain's appearance seems to have changed to suit the other game, mine has not."

The girl groaned. "Well thanks for spoiling the surprise!"

A new voice came from the shadows. "Allow me to spoil another surprise then." A tall vampire strode into the light to stand beside Kain. "The makers of Blood Omen 2 brought me back as well."

==========================================

Zofia- Vorador! *she runs up and hugs him*

Vorador- (stunned) Zofia? What are you doing here?

Syvia- That would be my doing. ^_^ Reviews, people? Oh- and get your butts over to Restoring Balance! The story won't appear at the top of the LoK section because I haven't added a new chapter. All I did was replace the notice I put up with the real chapter 4. :-p 


	9. The Name Game & Lack of Hair and Music...

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, or anything in them. Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel* Zofie Audron alone, is my brain child. I, of course, belong to myself. ^_^

Author's Notes: If you read- review! ^_^ ***Spoilers of **_all_** the LoK games- **_All. When I say all I mean ALL. Any chapter from here on out may include spoilers from Blood Omen 2!!!!_*****

Let's see... how long has it been since I did an in-depth thank you...? Chapter 5. Okey-dokey, let's see who's reviewed since then... *looks*

Esprit du feu- *hugs* I am so sorry I missed you the first time! How did that happen? And you're quite welcome. ^_^

DHA- *hugs once again* I love your reviews! *fights off the boys as she begins to write the new chapter, deposits the 40 mil into her Swedish bank account* :-D

bahamut- *waves* Thanks for sticking around! ^_^

Nemi- Those are very good questions. Her are the very good answers- We actually see Kain close his mouth during BO2. *snicker* No, there will be no NC-17 rating necessary for this fic, and although there will be sexual content, _I will not be involved in it_! *clears throat.* Thank you. 

What 'younger Janos'? Well... he does look as if he lost a few years from SR2 to BO2, but no- we will _not_ be likely to see the younger Janos in my fic... although, anything can happen. ;-) And as for the Albino Rat Bastard... *evil grin* we'll see. And what _did_ happen to Vorador's chin...?

Guardian of Tears- *lol* That's right!!!!!

Expert Predator- *Takes the skulls* Ooooh, I _like _them. *she holds one up* Alas, poor Yoric... *then looks at her strangely* 'Who's the new vampire?' *Vorador walks up and taps Expert on the shoulder* Does that answer your question?

Girlmew007- *Syvia smiles and bows in thanks*

Ranmyaku- There's a few more chapters to be had from BO1, but eventually the significant people from BO2 will show up. ;-D

*Hugs Edward, Honlei, , Dragonclaw, takes the dollar from Venris and winks*

Oh! Recently a friend pointed something out to me. I've been spelling Moebius' name wrong for several fics, and I'm not the only one. As weird as we may find it- Moebius has an 'e' in his name. Remember that, guys! Or end up like this;

Interlude: The Name Game

*Mobius walks out*

Mobius- I have a complaint. *he stands before Syvia with his arms crossed*

Syvia- *groaning* What is it? *Mobius points to his name in previous fics*

Mobius- You've been spelling my name wrong! _Consistently_!

Syvia- I thought consistency was good. *Mobius pulls his staff out of thin air and holds it threateningly. Syvia rolls her eyes.* What are you going to do with that? *He smiles evilly and activates it.*

Sylvia- Well?

Mobius- Look at your name now. 

Sylvia- *looking* WHAT THE HELL?!

Mobius- *laughs* Now we see how _you _like it.

Sylvia- Okay, okay, I get the point. How do I spell your name correctly? 

Mobius- M-o-_e_-b-i-u-s. Simple.

Sylvia- Okay, okay, _Moebius_. *rolls her eyes* Can you turn that thing off, please?

Moebius- *smiling* Certainly. *Syvia looks at her name and sighs in relief.*

Syvia- Can we get on with the fic now? *Moebius gestures grandly for her to precede him and they walk out of the white space*

^_^

Lack of Hair and Musical Chairs

"Which brings up another point!" Syvia cried out, pointing a finger at Vorador. "What in hell happened to you?!" The room's occupants turned to her. "I mean, granted, no one really looked _that _good in Blood Omen's graphics-"

"Which is especially sad for me, as it was the only game where anyone saw me," Mortanius grumbled, eyes fastened to the television.

"-so we can more or less discount them entirely," Syvia continued. "But like everyone else, you looked good in Soul Reaver 2-"

"Why, thank you," Vorador grinned at her. 

"You're welcome." Syvia quickly launched back into her original rant, "and correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you have _hair _in SR2? There were concept drawings of you with something that looked like a beard on your chin. You even had beads strung on it! Look at you now, instead of hair, you have scales."

Zofia looked at the girl confusedly. "He hasn't had _real _hair for a long time," she said, pointing to her adopted brother. 

"There are products that can help with that," Moebius smirked. 

"Well if _you've _gone on Rogaine, Moebius, we _know _it doesn't work," Raziel laughed, pulling down Moebius' hood.

"There is nothing wrong with going bald!" Moebius said haughtily, trying to fix his tunic. Ariel ran an insubstanial finger across his head curiously.

"I've always meant to ask- Are you _completely _bald or do you shave your head?" she grinned. The Time Streamer batted her hand away irritably and pulled his hood back on. Raziel promptly tugged it back down.

"Look- he's good luck," Raziel snickered, rubbing Moebius' head. Suddenly Moebius' staff seemed to appear out of nowhere and he smacked Raziel over the head with it. With the presence of the vampires in the room, the staff immediately began to glow. Kain, Vorador and the Ancients squinted against the glare.

"Moebius? Where did that thing come from?" Syvia asked in a bewildered tone of voice.

"Traveling dimensional pocket that exists outside of time," he explained. "I leave the staff inside and take it out as needed," he smiled at the vampires, enjoying their reaction to the crystal.

"Would you mind terribly getting rid of it?" Vorador asked acidly.

"Yes," Mortanius seconded, "it's casting a purple glare on the television."

"Another thing you should all know from playing the games," Moebius smirked, "is that I press my advantages."

"What advantage?" Zofia asked, rolling her eyes. "All that thing does is disable our magical powers. It doesn't knock us unconscious or cause actual pain...."

"Unless you count that annoying light," Janos added.

Raziel sighed heavily and grabbed the snake-staff from the Pillar of Time. Not expecting the attack, Moebius didn't put up a fight until Raziel had the staff securely in his grasp. The Soul Reaver took the crystal in one hand and tore it from its setting. He handed the staff back to an outraged Moebius and hefted the crystal.

"Raziel-" Syvia's eyes widened as he brought his arm back. "No, wait- STOP!" she cried, gesturing frantically with her hands.

The vampire wraith looked at her. "What?" he asked mildly.

"If you're going to brake that thing- go _outside_!" she shouted, pointing towards the back door.

"Oh, is that all?" Raziel said amusedly. He turned obligingly and walked into the kitchen. After a moment of confusion, Moebius jumped up and ran after him. Zofia, Vorador, Kain and Syvia looked at each other for a moment. They all grinned and rushed the loveseat. Ariel laughed softly as a shattering sound and an enraged cry sounded from outside the house. 

Zofia jumped over the back of the loveseat and settled in the middle. Syvia sat down on her right side, Vorador on her left, Kain perched on the back of the couch behind Syvia. They all made themselves comfortable and looked at the television, pretending they'd been there for the last ten minutes as Raziel and Moebius came back in the room.

Mortanius let out a slight chuckle, Janos rested his elbow on the arm of the rocking chair and put his face in his hand, hiding a smile behind his hand. Raziel and Moebius stood in the doorway, looking at the three with narrowed eyes. 

"Well come on up," Kain smirked, waiving them over. Syvia turned to look at them as Moebius rolled his eyes and climbed up on the back of the couch.

"Um... I don't know if that's such a good idea..." she murmured worriedly. They ignored her as Raziel pulled himself up behind Vorador. An ominous creaking came from the floor. The six on the loveseat looked down. 

"That _can't_ be good," Zofia said worriedly.

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Oooooh, will there soon be a very large hole in my game room floor? Find out in the next chapter! ^_^

Don't forget to review. :-D


	10. The Great Seat Escape

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, or anything in them. Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel* Zofie Audron alone, is my brain child. I, of course, belong to myself. ^_^

Author's Notes: If you read- review! ^_^ ***Spoilers of **_all_** the LoK games- **_All. When I say all I mean ALL. Any chapter from here on out may include spoilers from Blood Omen 2!!!!_*****

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Sixty-five reviews!!!!!!!!! *hugs the life out of all her reviewers* I love you guys!

Edward- *lol* Yep- you certainly do! ^_^

Exoduss- Heh, well my floor is so old that it wouldn't really be a laugh- it'd be more of a choking cough.

Remean- *lol* Yes, yes I agree with you. That is _not _Vorador. It's some kind of lizard version of Vorador.

Expert Predator- *grins* Thanks for still reading. ^_^ What my parents don't know doesn't hurt them... };-) 

*Hugs FireFX25 & SypherX* You guys are great! Thanx for reading & commenting. ^_^

Kiwi- 'blueberry'! *grins, thinks about that... looks off into middle distance, sighs distractedly. Shakes herself* What?

The Great Seat Escape

They looked at the edges of the loveseat, and the rectangular section of the grey carpet that seemed to be sinking a millimeter at a time.

"Okay, let's be calm about this- the drop isn't that far and we'll heal quickly," Raziel said, holding his hands out in what was supposed to be a calming motion.

"Easy for you to say," Syvia breathed.

"We should be doing something about this," Moebius said, his words tripping over each other. "Someone should think of something, and I nominate Zofia."

"Me?" the Ancient squeaked. "Why me?"

"Come now," Kain said, his grin a little strained, "you're a Wisdom Keeper, you're best suited to the task." There was a moment of silence as the floor creaked again.

"Why don't we all just _get up_?" Vorador asked in acid tones. He proceeded to do so, and as his weight shifted, the loveseat promptly lurched backwards, as most of the weight on it belonged to the three bodies perched on the back. The five people remaining on the seat screamed. Zofia snagged Vorador and pulled him back down into his place. 

"Try that again, brother, and I swear I'll kill you," she said through gritted teeth.

"Ah well," Vorador murmured, shaken by the rocking of the small couch, "I've been brought back twice already... I should be able to manage a third time."

"Now-" Zofia said carefully. "Raziel, Kain, Moebius, one by one I want you to get off the back of the couch, disturbing it as little as possible." The Soul Reaver went first, jumping from his seat and landing gently in the doorway to the kitchen. Raziel then inched back across the floor, picked Moebius straight up from his seat and dropped him ungraciously to the floor. Kain leapt from his position with cat-like grace and lighted in the living room. 

There was a loud crack from the floor as Zofia opened her mouth again. A loud creaking punctuated the second crack and the remaining three on the couch stood in unison.

They all stepped quickly away from the dangerous piece of furniture and turned to look back at it. The creaking had stopped. 

"Oh thank God for that," Syvia murmured. As if her words had been an signal, the supports suddenly gave way, dropping the couch to the basement floor with an ear-shattering crash. Her mouth dropped open and hers wasn't the only one to do so. Syvia covered her mouth with shaking hands, staring at the perfect square hole in the floor.

The tense silence was broken by a throat being cleared. "Would it inconvenience you to move?" Mortanius asked. "You're blocking the television."

Syvia glanced at him for a moment, then let out a small, tittering laugh. The Nosgothians looked at her nervously. The girl continued to laugh. She laughed so hard that her legs gave out and she slid to the floor, clutching her sides. Zofia and Vorador were still blocking the television, eyeing Syvia, so Mortanius' comments continued for some few minutes. 

The complaints stopped when the TV suddenly went black, then revealed the PS2 startup graphics. Syvia's laughter faded slowly and she began turning off the Playstation. Mortanius' eyes narrowed. "Exactly what are you doing?" he murmured dangerously.

Syvia let out a bark of laughter. "We just ran out of seats in this room. We'll have to move into the living room." She was methodically unhooking the system from the television, almost completely ignoring the Pillar of Death. "Zofia," she said, not looking up, "if you have some form of sleeping spell handy, would you be a dear and use it on my parents- since they had to have heard that crash?"

"I already did," she murmured. Zofia looked nervously at her father. 

"Oh, good," Syvia chuckled. "How prudent of you." The girl straightened with the Playstation 2 in hand and walked into the living room, smiling brightly at her visitors. Janos noticed that, passing Ariel, Syvia met the specter's eyes without difficulty. 

The Nosgothians traded glances, all thinking the same thing. _She's snapped completely this time._ They looked reprovingly at Mortanius, who was grumbling, still holding the Playstation controller, which Syvia had detached from the game system.

Eventually they followed the girl into her living room, where she was installing the game into the family television. The other five people who'd been involved in the loveseat fiasco slowly took seats on the large blue couch and arm chair, the matching ottoman, and a recliner. Janos dragged his rocking chair into the doorway and Mortanius waived a hand, teleporting himself, chair and all, into the next room. Ariel floated into the room and hovered behind the human girl.

"Are- are you well?" she asked hesitantly. Syvia laughed in response.

"I've decided that you people are going to kill or drive me insane sooner or later, so I should just calm down and enjoy the time I have left." Zofia grimaced. Kain and Moebius traded sheepish looks. Raziel's eyes crinkled.

"That's the spirit," he said encouragingly. The others looked at him. "What?"

================================

*grins* Review please. ^_^

Zofia- .....

Syvia- What?

Zofia- *points to the 'Restoring Balance' file*

Syvia- The fifth chapter still needs editing.

*Zofia sighs and walks out.*

Syvia- *Shrugs* She's getting impatient with me. I'm just trying to get the chapter _right_. Ah well. *walks out*


	11. For everything else the VampMasterCard

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, MasterCard, or anything in them, or to do with them. :-p Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel* Zofie Audron alone, is my brain child. I, of course, belong to myself. ^_^

Author's Notes: If you read- review! ^_^ ***Spoilers of **_all_** the LoK games- **_All. When I say all I mean ALL. Any chapter from here on out may include spoilers from Blood Omen 2!!!!_*****

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Demon Hunter Anamae- *waves her hands in a calming manner* It's okay, it's okay. I'm going to start on BO2 after the next chapter. ^_^

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Exoduss- That's right!

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Venris13- *lol* It won't. ^_^ *runs around in circles jibbering*

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Bahamut- *dimples appear in her cheeks and Syvia scrapes the ground with her toes innocently*

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Sauron- Well, it wasn't the shortest chapter I've ever done... I don't think. :-D

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Expert Predator- Well, this must be soon enough ~_^ since I'm not dead. *grins*

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Ranmyaku- *lol* I'll contrive to see him hit several more times before the games are over. ~_^

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GoT- Awww, por Raz. ^_^ Don't worry. I think _his _hitting on people is going to take a back seat to the other vamps in BO2. ^_^ And thanks for the RB comment! :-D I think I got it done okay. 

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MightyVenduss- Thank you! I hope you get BO2 as well. Kick @$$ game! ^_^ Hey... what drew you to the story? ?:-o 

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Honlei- *lol* 

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DRHSSN- Three letters for you, buddy- YES! ^_^

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Little Miss Fic Writer- ^_^ Thanks. And seriously, I can't choose. ^_^ But if I _had _to- *points to Raz* 

Raziel- Me? YESSSSS! 

*Guardian of Tears gives Syvia a threatening look*

Syvia- Don't worry, GoT, I'd never make a move on your man! :-D

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Edward- *winces* Ouch... that had to hurt.

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FireFX25- Yeah, I know. Well this one is longer. ^_^ And... what they don't know won't hurt them! *whistles innocently* Major hate case for Morty? Hmmm... interesting. ^_^ *shrugs*

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Wolfywoman- Damn! You reviewed my fic with a vengeance. Almost pushed me over 90 reviews. *lol* ^_^ Thank you very much! :8}

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Phenalli- Thank you! You got it. ;-)

Syvia- In this chapter; *fanfare* Moebius bashing! *lmao* "And there was much rejoicing." 'Yaaaay!'

For everything else; the _Vamp_MasterCard- Don't leave Nosgoth without it! 

Syvia had draped herself over one arm of the couch. She looked utterly comfortable and completely at ease. Moebius, who'd been forced to sit beside her, quivered like a tautly stretched rubber band. 

"What's wrong, Moby?" Syvia asked. He flinched in surprise and she grinned. "I thought you _liked _crazy people," the girl smirked.

Moebius was silent for a moment. "What did you just call me?" he asked, bewildered. 

"Moby," Syvia answered with a grin. The girl turned and abruptly draped herself over Moebius in the same fashion that she had the couch. "Why?" she asked, squeezing his shoulders in a companionable way. "Don't you like it?"

Moebius looked into her wide-eyed gaze and smiled winningly. "Oh, it's wonderful, absolutely... wonderful...." Syvia smiled happily and hugged him once before returning to her former position on the couch. While the girl was distracted, Moebius had a quick but furious wrestling match with Raziel in an effort to trade his seat for the Soul Reaver's. Raziel won by default after summoning the Reaver, and Moebius subsided, fuming silently.

On the television, Kain was battling Moebius' minions in four sequential battles. "'I have seen the future, Kain,'" the videogame Moebius laughed. "'_You're _not in it!'" 

Vorador sat forward in his chair. "Wait a minute- how did you get that far in the game? Weren't we in the Termogent forest a short while ago?"

"Syvia turned off the game before I had a chance to save," Mortanius grumbled. "I decided to start from here." Mortanius had ended the battle and they were now watching the cut scene between Kain and Moebius. 

"'The future says- _you die_!'" videogame Moebius growled.

"Ooooh!" Raziel chuckled, "Here it comes!"

"'But I _am _dead,'" videogame Kain answered. The visiting Kain smirked in anticipation. 

"What's he going to do?" Vorador asked, eyes fixed on the screen.

"_Shhhhhhh_!" Janos and Kain said in unison waving their hands at him.

Videogame Kain lopped off videogame Moebius' head. Raziel rose from his chair, arms held up in a 'U' to mimic a football referee. "It's _gooooooooood_!" he shouted over videogame Kain's remaining lines. Raziel turned and slapped Syvia's hand in a 'high five'. It was then that Zofia came into the room with several glasses of some kind of red liquid (which we won't name, or ask the origins of- just use your imaginations). "What? What did I miss?" she asked, handing them out.

Vorador was crying with mirth. "Oh, I have to see that a second time!" he gasped between barks of laughter. 

"Encore!" Janos murmured, grinning. "Encore!" Moebius was sitting on the couch, arms crossed over his chest, eyes narrowed, grumbling to himself. The rest of the room didn't care.

Syvia grinned. "Go to the Dark Chronical option and put it on again!" she cried. With a twist of his bony lips, Mortanius complied. Ariel smiled slightly and hid the smile behind her hand. Zofia sat down on the arm of Vorador's chair and watched. 

"'But I _am_ dead,'" videogame Kain said again. He lopped off videogame Moebius' head once again. "'As are you.'" Everyone looked at Zofia, to see her reaction. The young Ancient had a hand over her mouth, her eyes were wide. Raziel and Kain looked at her in surprise.

"Oh, Zofie, um... I'm sorry I didn't warn you... uh, that scene _was _a little graphic," Syvia said, sounding more like her old self. A small sound emerged from Zofia's lips. The Ancient's wings quivered and her shoulders shook. Then Zofia's hand came down from her mouth and she doubled over, laughing. She laughed loudly and infectiously, a belly laugh that almost caused her to fall off of her seat on the blue arm chair. 

Zofia closed her hand around Vorador's shoulder to stay upright. She laughed so hard that she began to cry. The others began to smile, and then to laugh along with her. Moebius threw the Ancient a dirty look. When Zofia noticed it, she only laughed harder. The blue-skinned woman wrapped her arms around her stomach, trying to compose herself.

Moebius left the room finally, and Zofia began to quiet down. "Do it again, do it again!" Raziel called to Mortanius. The Pillar of Death, still grinning, did.

Syvia grinned during the tenth beheading. "Playstation 2 Game System- $300... Used copy of Blood Omen- $10... Playstation Memory Card- $7... Watching Kain kill Moebius ten times in a row-"

"Priceless!" Syvia and Raziel said together. Then they both laughed. The others, having never seen a MasterCard commercial, didn't get the joke. Mortanius continued the game, moving from the castle grounds, videogame Kain turned into a flock of bats and flew off towards the pillars. 

The visiting Kain chuckled softly to himself and relaxed in the blue recliner. Then he remembered what the end of the next battle would bring. He cast a sidelong glance at Mortanius, who was looking at him out of the corner of his eye, a malevolent grin curling his lips. "Oh shit," he murmured with feeling. 

"Play on, little vampire," Mortanius whispered, a guttural tone creeping into his voice, "_play on_."

"_Syvia_," Kain called, jumping out of his seat. The others looked at him, surprised by the panicked tone of his voice. "I believe it may be a good idea if I spoke to you in the um-" Kain's voice broke in his anxiety and he cleared his throat, "kitchen."

"Uh... okay," the girl said, standing. She walked around Mortanius, who cast an amused glance at Kain as Syvia followed him from the room. "What's wrong?" she asked once they got out of earshot of the living room. 

He shot her an annoyed look. "You do _remember _what Mortanius turned into after I killed him- _right_?!"

Her eyes grew wide. "Oh _shit_," she breathed. Kain nodded, relived that Syvia seemed to understand the problem, when she continued, "Did Mortanius make a big mess on the pillars when Hash exploded out of him?" Kain looked at the girl in askance. "I doubt blood and gore is easy to clean out of a carpet..." Syvia continued worriedly. The vampire sighed disgustedly and called Janos, who joined them with a confused look on his face.

"The quick explanation is this- the Unspoken is about to appear in Syvia's living room, we need to do something... _now_."

Janos' mouth dropped open at Kain's announcement. Syvia was holding a conversation with herself, discussing various cleaning products that worked on bloodstains. Kain glanced at the girl, then turned to Janos again. "Could you _please _fix her? She knows how to work the game system, we require her mind to be working _correctly_."

"She is not likely to thank me for it, once the Unspoken has arisen," Janos grimaced.

"If we all die- it's not likely to _matter_," Kain pointed out, his tone strained.

"Fine," Janos rolled his eyes. "Fine." He reached out and placed a hand over Syvia's forehead. The girl's one-sided conversation about cleaners came to a halt and she closed her eyes. 

Janos concentrated for a few moments, his eyes staring out into middle distance. Syvia opened her eyes and blinked rapidly as Janos moved away. "What's going on?" she asked groggily, putting a hand to her head. Suddenly a growling laugh sounded from the living room and at least three voices rose in high-pitched screams. The three of them turned as one in the direction of the living room. 

"The Unspoken is here," Kain murmured, a buffer of shock was in place in his mind, protecting him from panicking.

"_What_?" Syvia cried, turning to him. 

"Awww," the guttural voice was only a murmur, yet it reverberated throughout the entire house. Hash'ak'gik continued amusedly, "Is the vampire protecting his little sister from the big, bad demon?" Janos' eyes widened at those words and he rushed into the living room. 

"Oh shit," Syvia whispered. She began repeating the words over and over again under her breath. 

"Okay, okay," Kain said, grasping her by the shoulders, "we can work though this- think; how can we get rid of him?"

"I- we- I," the girl spluttered. 

"The Dark one has _come _and there will be none powerful enough to stop him from _conquering the world_!" Moebius cried drunkenly, staggering towards them from the far end of the kitchen. There was laughter and a clap of thunder from the family room. Syvia yelped and Kain's hands tightened briefly on her shoulders. Moebius wobbled towards them, half a dozen mini bottles of liquor in his hand; four of them empty.

"Hey," Syvia murmured, slightly indignant. "Those were leftover party favors from Christmas last year-" Moebius smiled at her blearily, rocking gently back and forth on his feet. Kain was looking nervously towards the living room. 

"I think our problems are _slightly _more dire than some missing alcohol," Kain reminded the girl.

"But _I _don't know how this happened, Kain! If you want Hash gone- ask _him_," she cried, pointing to the intoxicated Time Streamer. 

"The _stars _in the Chronoplast viewers go _round _and _round_..." Moebius sang, flailing his arms. He overshot one step and bumped into a chair. "Oh," he grinned down at it, "pardon me, please." Then he belched loudly. 

"Uh-huh," Kain murmured, fixing his narrowed gaze on Moebius. They heard a surprised shout which sounded like Raziel as a fireball shot from the family room into the game room. It hit Syvia's computer printer, melting the equipment into a puddle of grey plastic. "Think, girl, _think_," Kain urged.

Syvia grimaced at him, eyes wide, and put her hands to her temples. 

"Okay," she murmured, "okay... how do we get the seven-foot tall demon out of my living room-?"

"He's actually somewhat taller than that," Moebius snickered, raising one of the little bottles to his lips. 

Kain and Syvia ignored him. "We could turn off the game!" Kain suggested.

"As soon as I turned it on again he'd appear!" Syvia shouted.

"Do I hear the voice of our hostess?" the demonic voice murmured.

"Oh _shit_," Kain and Syvia breathed. 

====================================================

Syvia- So how was that? ^_^ Exciting? Intriguing? A-

Zofia- You _must _be joking. 

Syvia- What?

Zofia- You can't leave those poor readers hanging like that!!

Syvia- Why not?

Zofia- It's a cliffhanger, Syvia! Think of all the death threats you'll receive, ending the chapter like that.

Syvia- I like to live dangerously. }:-D 


	12. “Is this the real life is this just fant...

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, MasterCard, or anything in them, or to do with them. :-p Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel* Zofie Audron alone, is my brain child. I, of course, belong to myself. ^_^ This chapter's title is taken from the song _Bohemian Rhapsody _by Queen, which I also don't own. 

Author's Notes: If you read- review! ^_^ ***Spoilers of **_all_** the LoK games- **_All. When I say all I mean ALL._*****

*begins to sing* "I see a little silhouetteo of a man- scalla_moosh_, scalla_moosh_, do you do the fandango, thunderbolts and lightning, very very frightening _me_, Galileo! (Galileo!) Galileo! (Galileo!) Galileo, Figaro-" *Zofia rushes up and hits Syvia over the head. She shuts up abruptly.*

Syvia- *sits there stunned for a minute* Reviews!

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Ranmyaku- *lol* Very good point. I too have seen more cliffhangers than was good for my sanity. As if anyone ever _likes _a cliffhanger. ^_^ 

*grins* Thank you! Yep- Once I realized how evil and annoying Moebius was in SR2, the head chopping scene became even more enjoyable. *snickers*

*Bows to Turel Alden & Ezra* Oh- I saw that piccy! Those boyos are handsome! ^_^ *smiles at Alden and Ezra*

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Wolfywoman- Only _getting _interesting? *fake pouts, laughs* Thanks for the review!

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FireFX25- *grins* Well I'm glad I can surprise you even though you've already played the game! 

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Sauron- *lol* Too true, and if I made you guys wait as long as CD made us wait between SR1 & 2, you'd have _my _permission to do unpleasant things to me! };-p

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Nemi- A good question. ^_^ I think he's strong, and your sarcasm is noted and well placed. I think he was more of a priest than a fighter, but I think he was probably a _very _powerful sorcerer.

As to whether or not Janos will kick some ass in _my _fics... uh... I don't know yet. I don't know if I'm going to go into a detailed fight scene during WCWN. 

Watch RB for fight scenes, but I think Janos is going to be a whipping boy during Restoring Balance. *sad smile & a shrug* 

My thinking is; although Janos _was _a fighter, his battling days are long past. But all the same- keep reading and see. :-)

That, and our conception of Janos is different, Nemi. You see him as a hot, winged, blueberry-colored sex god. (I've seen your pics of his ass, btw. Ooh'la'la! *wicked grin*) 

I'm writing him as a father figure. It's the difference between SR2 & BO2's Janos. *smiles* But I may let Zofie leave during my analysis of BO2 and pull out the 'younger' Janos. *wide grin* It could be fun to write Janos as a confrontational character.

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Venris13- *grins* Moebius doesn't need a break! *Moebius appears behind Syvia and slaps her upside the head* Ow!

Q-tip? *chuckles* Why do I not want to ask? ^_^

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CrazyDragon- *hugs her* Thanx!

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Expert Predator- Short... _SHORT_? Compared to what? *rolls eyes* I've seen fics that were much shorter- and I've _written _fics that were much longer! Which fic of mine, may I ask, is getting more reviews?! This one! The _shorter _one!! %&*#! *goes into an extended rant with lots of cursing. Eventually calms down.*

Okay, okay, I'm good. *clears throat* As for your threat- well, you seem to be missing one very large hole in that plan. 

If I'm dead- no more fic. *smiles sweetly* 

You expect it soon? *scoffs* Hell, I expected to top 100 in reviews after submitting the tenth chapter- but then, life doesn't always give us what we expect, does it? *ironic grin*

"Is this the real life... is this just fantasy?"

"_Think_," Kain urged again. "Quickly."

"I _am _thinking, damnit," Syvia whispered. The sounds of the struggle were slowly getting closer. Syvia was edging behind Kain, who had turned to face the game room doorway, ready for any threat from that direction. Unfortunately... it was the _wrong _one. 

The door connecting the hall to the kitchen slammed open, pushing Moebius, who had been standing in front of it, forward into Syvia. The girl's head cracked back against the floor, causing her to see stars. Moebius lay on the lower half of her body, pinning her to the linoleum. When her vision cleared, Kain was grappling with an enormous black form. Ivory talons were curled around Kain's neck, squeezing. 

The vampire scored five jagged slashes across the Unspoken's dark chest and followed with a punch to the creature's face. They both fell back into the hall and a flailing limb knocked the door closed. 

Syvia looked down at Moebius, raised a shaking hand and nudged his shoulder. "You can get off me now," she said, attempting to wriggle out from under him. The Time Streamer's robes were not exactly loose-fitting; they made it obvious that Moebius was a thin, fairly scrawny man, yet he felt heaver than he should have been. Syvia didn't think she'd be getting out from under him without help. "Moebius!" she cried urgently, nervously raising her eyes to the hall door. 

There was a loud thud and a pained cry the other room. In the brief moment of silence that followed, Syvia could hear the Time Streamer snoring. Her eyes grew wide and her efforts more frenzied. She grabbed Moebius' robes and attempted to push at his back as she pulled her legs out from under his body. He snorted in his sleep and closed his arms around her waist. "Oh God _damn _it!" she muttered, picking at his hands, which were intertwined at the small of her back. 

He snorted again and began to mumble. "Hmmm.... Raziel," his arms tightened a bit and he nuzzled her stomach. 

"What the hell?" the girl murmured. 

"I buried you once before," Kain said in the hall, "and I can do it again."

The Unspoken laughed. "But you had the Soul Reaver then. You are no longer the blade's keeper."

"I have no keeper," Raziel grated. Then there was the sound of claw against flesh, tearing, and the sizzle of magical energy charging the air.

"Moebius, get _off _of me!" Syvia cried softly. She tried to draw her knees up to her chest; he was just too heavy. The girl whispered curse words, shoving the Time Streamer with all of her strength. He just made protesting noises and grasped her more tightly. 

An explosion went off in the hallway. The silence was thick throughout the house, then the sound of a foot scraping the floor. Syvia's eyes were drawn to the doorknob as it turned very slowly and the door was drawn back. 

The girl's breath went out in a rush as the Unspoken crouched down in order to fit through the door. "Hi," she squeaked nervously at the demon. It turned and fixed her with its burning red eyes. Her mouth slowly fell open at the sheer malevolence of that gaze and the creature smirked.

Syvia flinched as the Unspoken reached forward and plucked Moebius off of her lap, laying the Time Streamer on his stomach on the kitchen floor. A small line of drool fell out of the corner of his mouth, but this amusing fact went unnoticed as Syvia stood quickly and backed away from the demon. "I owe you my thanks, human," Hash'ak'gik rumbled, pacing forward. "Allow me to show my gratitude," he said, leering. 

"Oh," she smiled nervously, trying to stall it, "th-that's not really necessary," the girl stammered. Syvia glanced at the hallway and caught a glimpse of three prone bodies on the floor. The white and black tiles were stained red. 

It smiled in response. "I insist." Syvia swallowed audibly and tried to speak again. 

A rush of black feathers and pale skin appeared between them. Zofia's wings were spread, mantling in defense of the human girl. Syvia couldn't see the wide eyes and tense muscles of Zofia's face. The Ancient was scared to death of the Demon Lord, but faced him to protect someone who was weaker. 

In one hand Zofia held a sphere of white fire that licked the air with emerald colored tongues. Hash'ak'gik chuckled darkly at her. "Haven't we tried this before?" the demon smiled.

"With fair success on my part," Zofia murmured, her voice steady. 

The demon laughed again, laughed so hard that he didn't hear the Ancient whisper to Syvia. "Be ready... under the table... get into the living room... finish the game." 

Hash'ak'gik took a deep breath, rose to his full height, and Zofia threw the fire into his face. It flew from her hand, and kept coming- a pale jet of flame, from which there was no noticeable heat. The demon roared in pain for only a few moments before the cry changed into a deep growl. Syvia wasted no time, but she only had enough time to dive under the table and crawl out the other side before a powerful blow landed on the side of Zofia's head, rendering the Ancient unconscious.

A hairless black arm shot out in front of Syvia, blocking the door. "Going somewhere?" the demon breathed into her ear. For a moment, her heart literally stopped. The demon leaned towards her. Syvia shuddered and, without thinking, ducked under Hash'ak'gik's arm and ran for the living room. 

Raziel materialized out of thin air as she dove for the game controller. He took only a moment to assess the situation and lunged for the Unspoken, who was tearing gashes into the small doorframe that led from the kitchen to the game room. Syvia frantically used an Energy Bank on videogame Kain, cast Barrier and pulled out the Soul Reaver. 

In the other room, Raziel was slashing wildly at the demon, who was giving as good as it got in attacks. Raziel kicked the Dark Entity in the stomach and it fell backwards into the hole made by Syvia's loveseat. Hash'ak'gik grabbed the Soul Reaver's leg and pulled Raziel down with him. From the grunts and shouts that sounded from the basement, it seemed that the fight was being continued down below.

Syvia continued the fight on television, cursing as the Energy Bank ended. She repeated the previous process and continued to follow the videogame Unspoken, swiping at him with the Soul Reaver blade. The fight seemed to grow slower. She couldn't hear as much noise from Raziel.

_Oh shit, is he losing?_ the girl wondered. Her heart fluttered in panic. The Barrier wore off, but Syvia didn't bother to renew it, she drove videogame Kain towards the Unspoken and made a slash at the demon... who died.

Abruptly, there was silence again. Syvia looked over at the game room and the gaping hole in the floor. The girl licked her dry lips, set the controller down on the floor and tried to stand. Her legs were shaking too badly to allow it and she settled for crawling slowly into the other room. 

"Ra-" her voice came out in an inaudible whisper. Syvia cleared her throat and tried again. "Raziel?" she called softly.

A hand shot out of the darkness and grasped the edge of the hole. The girl shrieked automatically before realizing the hand was flesh of a vivid blue and not light-devouring black. The Soul Reaver pulled himself onto the grey carpeting beside her. 

Syvia covered her eyes with one shaking hand briefly before using it to lash out at the vampire wraith. 

"It's pleasant to see you as well," he murmured ironically. 

"You're an _asshole_," she shouted. 

He looked at her with wide eyes. "Now that seems just a bit uncalled for."

"You and that drunken Guardian in there," she cried, pointing at the kitchen, "are responsible for all of this!" Syvia pointed wildly at the hole in the floor, her melted printer, the gashes in the sides of the kitchen doorway and various burn marks on the white-painted walls. She got up and walked through the living room, opened the French doors leading to the hallway and looked down at Janos, Vorador and Kain, who were lying in the hall, their wounds almost fully healed. She paced into the kitchen and studied Zofia briefly before returning to the hallway. 

"They're alive," she said harshly to Raziel, who had followed her. "When they get up, you tell them that this house has to look like it did before you people wrecked it, by tomorrow morning- or all my Legacy of Kain discs are going to get broken in half!" With that she stomped upstairs, climbed into bed, fully dressed, and instantly fell asleep.

The buzzing of the alarm woke her.

Syvia flinched, surged out of bed and flicked the switch, like she always did. She stood there for a few moments, one hand braced on the wall as she shook off the disorientation of unconsciousness, which was also a routine action. She looked down at her house clothes, rumpled from being slept in, and remembered everything that had gone on last night.

The girl ran unsteadily out of her bedroom, down the hall, and almost slid down the steps. She froze at the landing. 

The hall tiles... were clean. Pristine white and black with a slight marble-like design on them. Syvia threw herself down the last two steps and dropped to the floor, looking for blood. Anything from a puddle to a spot. There was _none_.

She lurched over to the French doors and tore through them, running for the game room. Another bout of dizziness overcame Syvia as she saw the green loveseat with its thin stripes of pink and cream making a subtle plaid pattern on the upholstery. There was no hole, no ripped carpeting, no splinters of wood. She checked for each several times.

The girl looked to her computer desk and equipment. The printer was whole, perfect, normal. She touched it and it was room temperature.

Syvia's jaw clenched, her cheeks grew pink and with a little cry of rage she ran over to the loveseat, tore a slipper off her foot and began beating it on the large piece of furniture. She ripped the blue and cream afghan off of the back and threw it across the room before resuming her abuse of the sofa.

Approximately five minutes later she was sitting on said loveseat, panting. "Damnit," she muttered. Syvia threw her slipper halfheartedly to the floor, got up and headed into the bathroom for a shower.

=========================================

And so ends the Blood Omen Segment. ^_^

The next chapter will see the beginning of Blood Omen 2. Watch for more fun. ^_^ *blows a kiss*

Oh- and, that method I used to defeat Hash in the videogame? Yep- that's _really _how I kill Hash at the end of Blood Omen. Energy Bank, Barrier, Soul Reaver. *grins* Water, Rinse, Repeat... Repeat, Repeat, Repeat. ^_^

If I missed a few bits of bad grammar or a few misspelled words; well let's see how _you _write at 1:15 am. *yawns and falls face-first onto her desk* Zzzzzzzzzzzzz......


	13. So does this mean I’m Shemp?

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, MasterCard, anything in them, or to do with them. :-p Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel* And any exact quotes from BO2 will come from Ranmyaku's numerous pages of dialogue. You go girl! ^_^ *hugs* Zofie Audron alone, is my brain child. I, of course, belong to myself. ^_^ 

Author's Notes: If you read- review! ^_^ ***Spoilers of **_all_** the LoK games- **_All. When I say all I mean ALL._*****

*Adojan walks out into the white space*

Syvia- Hey, bud, what's up?

Adojan- Hey Syv. *hugs her* I'm takin' over for Zofie as the resident brainchild for this fic. ^_^ 

Syvia- Why? Is she okay?

Adojan- Well, yes and no. She didn't really get hurt during the fight with Hash, but she _was _a little shaken up. She's gonna chill back at haven for a few chapters. 

Syvia- It's just as well, I don't think she'd be too happy about meeting the Sarafan Lord.

Adojan- So, *rubs his palms together* are we ready for Blood Omen 2?

Syvia- *laughing* As ready as we'll ever be. *they link arms and walk out of the white space. The scene fades out.*

So... does this mean I'm Shemp?

Syvia dropped to the floor in front of the living room television, her jacket and half-empty book bag still on, loaded her newest game into the Playstation 2 and grinned. Months of waiting and she finally had it. Hell, she hadn't had a new game since October and the release of Soul Reaver 2. It was still light out, and the girl was hoping she'd have a few hours of play time alone before her 'guests' arrived. For once, she wasn't being overly optimistic. Syvia had almost finished chapter 3 before the first characters arrived. The ones who arrived, however, would not have been her first choice for guests. 

Videogame Kain chased an unnamed vampire through the streets of Meridian. In Syvia's living room, a ghostly chuckle echoed, and an unseen form caused the curtains to blow in the wind of its passing. The human girl dropped her controller and stood up quickly, putting her back to the wall. 

"Who's there?" she asked softly. The chuckle echoed again. "Okay... let's do this by process of elimination," Syvia murmured, eyes darting to the two doorways that led out of the room. "Only someone from the game can appear without warning. The voice isn't familiar, so you're one of the new vampires..." she breathed in slowly, "or the Sarafan Lord."

"I don't believe I flatter myself in saying I'm more attractive then the Sarafan Lord," one voice drawled, and a grinning vampire strode out of the hallway. He was as tall as Kain had been, dressed in a red suit. He had long black hair that many women would kill to possess.

"Faustus, I presume?" Syvia murmured. The vampire looked her over with a half smile on his face, stroked his chin meditatively. 

"Do you know, I haven't had a _truly _good meal in years... you look like a healthy young thing." Syvia caught her breath at the word meal, her eyes widening as Faustus vaulted over the armchair and landed an inch away from her. The vampire put a hand flat against the wall on either side of the girl's head. He leaned into her, breathing in the scent of her blood, his mouth close enough to her neck that Syvia could feel fangs brushing her skin. "Is that the blood of a virgin I smell?" he chuckled softly. 

The girl flushed in embarrassment. Without thought, Syvia lifted her knee and brought it right on target, into his crotch. Faustus' eyes bugged out in pain and surprise and he went down, curling himself into a little ball on the carpet, holding the relevant part of his anatomy. The laughter echoed again and was joined by another voice. Syvia backed away from the doorways as two vampires strode into the light. One was dressed in a black robe-like outfit and a thin red vest. His fingers were thin and topped with murderously long claws. The other was dressed in solid, unrelieved black, and wore a skull cap upon his head, and a cape that reached to his ankles. 

"One with spirit," the caped vampire said. "I do enjoy adrenaline in my supper." His voice seemed to echo, as if it were being recorded by a bad microphone. 

"Yours?" the other vamp drawled. "There shan't be enough blood for even _one _vampire the way you eat. You waste enough blood to feed _three _of our kind."

"And you would put your lips to one of the unwashed peasants of Meridian?" the caped vampire murmured, taunting. "No, not _you_,Marcus. You would rather take one of those little puppets of yours. Priests bathe daily, do they not?" There was a blur of dark cloth and the vampire who remained unnamed caught Syvia, who'd been working at one of the windows, attempting to use it as an escape route. She gave a high, short scream as the vampire spun her around and held her firmly by the throat. He continued speaking as if the event had never happened. "Ripping the victim apart shows distain, or haste... or simply," he smiled into the girl's frightened eyes, "a love of carnage."

"Or a tendency to play with one's food before one eats it," Marcus said mildly, running fingers idly over his hairless scalp. 

"And you both are in the habit of doing so, are you not?" Faustus said painfully, rising from the floor.

Syvia was very, very close to full on hysterics as Marcus and Faustus came closer, smiling hungrily.

Where the hell was Kain? Even if he didn't like Syvia enough to protect her, he hated these guys enough to pick a fight. What about Umah? She seemed like a decent enough vampiress.... Where were Raziel and Moebius? During the previous nights, they'd been the first ones to show up. The three vampires gathered around, and in a moment of brilliance brought on by panic, Syvia spoke up.

"Wait! You're going to have to decide who's first here... after all, I only have one neck-"

"But two wrists," Faustus smiled, taking one of her hands. Marcus chuckled.

"Yeah-" Syvia broke in, the word coming out as a yelp, "but who gets what?"

And that's when things started to get _really _weird. 

"Well _I _get her neck, as I have the highest rank of the three of us," Sebastian said, looking at the others. 

"The only thing you have of high rank, Sebastian, is your breath." Faustus murmured wryly.

"Why don't you go wash your hair, Master of the Slums?" Marcus said, hiding his smirk from Sebastian.

"At least I have hair to _wash_, Marcus."

_The hair discussion again? _Syvia thought, amused despite herself.

"Melchiah will be so pleased that he isn't the only bald vampire," Faustus was saying, looking from Marcus to Sebastian, a half-smile on his face.

Sebastian dropped Syvia and casually backhanded the long-haired vampire. Faustus slammed against the wall, bared his teeth at the armored vampire and aimed a punch at Sebastian. The caretaker of the Industrial Sector ducked backwards and the blow landed straight on Marcus' perfect nose. The bald vampire shouted and stepped back, hands cupped over his face. The three vampires formed a small triangle in the center of the room, each keeping an eye on the other two.

"Well? Now what?" Faustus and Marcus said abruptly. The two turned to each other, identical confused expressions on their faces. They'd spoken in perfect unison. Sebastian's eye ridges rose. 

"Hmm... that was rather odd," the other two said. Their eyes widened in the same instant and the two vampires glared, pointing at each other. "You annoying bastard," they both whispered venomously, then they straightened, faces growing violently angry. "Cut that out!"

Sebastian chuckled, not quite understanding what was going on, but thinking it amusing nonetheless.

Marcus and Faustus turned to him with outraged expressions on their faces. Still pointing at each other, and resembling mirror images in their actions they said, "That bastard is reading my mind so he can imitate me!"

Sebastian's smirk grew wider. In a childish fit of annoyance, Faustus struck out at his tormentor. He formed a 'v' with two clawed fingers and poked Marcus in the eyes. Marcus, who'd been anticipating the gesture, put his fingers up in front of his nose- the maneuver would have worked, had Faustus' fingers been the size of a human's. Marcus jerked away, shouting curses, covering the injured orbs. 

Syvia, who had gotten to the staircase landing by this time, stared at them in shock. _Been watching too many Three Stooges tapes, have they? _She pulled her thoughts back to the previous topic.

_Weapons... weapons... where the hell can I get weapons?_ Syvia had been hoping for an out. Someone to get here. Janos, Vorador, hell even her parents, but they wouldn't be any help. She thanked God briefly that they were both at work, after all, what could they really do against three vampires? At this point she knew, if she was to be saved, she'd have to save herself. _Okay girl, think. Mom has a mace gun in the bedroom... what good would that do? Assuming of course I could find it before they got me. What do I have access to that they'd be afraid of? _Then it hit her. A truly evil smile appeared on the girl's face. She began to inch up the staircase, and a step creaked beneath her foot.

__

Hearing it, the vampires turned to look at Syvia. As one, they leered at her. The girl's smile disappeared.

"Oh shit..." she murmured. Then she ran.

The young human bolted up the stairs, listening to the footsteps slowly creaking on the old carpet-covered wood behind her. The vampires were giving her time, time to be afraid, confident that she couldn't escape. She didn't care. In a few minutes, the vampires wouldn't want to stick around. 

She leapt up the stairs, across a small stretch of hallway and into the room at the top. Syvia slammed the door, locked it, grabbed a three-foot tall towel rack and shoved it under the doorknob just before it began to jiggle. There came an oh-so-cordial knocking on the door.

"Now, now, my dear," Marcus called lightly, "we only want to play."

Syvia had climbed into the bathtub, fully clothed, and taken the moveable shower head from its mounting. She fumbled with the hot and cold knobs, drenching her jeans and tennis shoes before she managed to turn get the water on high pressure and switched from the spigot to the shower nozzle. 

With the scrape of metal on linoleum tile, the vampires entered and Syvia was out of time. She trained the nozzle on the door and turned the improvised water pistol on. 

There was a scream and the hiss of burning flesh as the nozzle caught Sebastian on the side of the face and Faustus' hand. They slammed the door shut on the stream of water. Syvia, torn between not wanting to waste water and not wanting to turn it off, sat down in the tub with the pressure on low. 

"Come back in any time you want more!" she shouted. "Assholes," she whispered to herself. Syvia crouched in the bathtub, cradling the showerhead, and shook with fear.

==================================

Some of my buddies won't be happy that I hurt the sezzy Bo2 boys, but oh well. *flutters eyelashes* Look at it this way, it's not like they'll scar. *chuckles*


	14. 

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: If you recognize something in this fic, then it probably belongs to someone else. To be more specific- I don't own Playstation, LoK, MasterCard, anything in them, or to do with them. :-p Oh, and I got the exact quotes from BO1 at nosgoth.net in the Blood Omen Dialogue section. *bows to Wolf Raziel* And any exact quotes from BO2 will come from Ranmyaku's numerous pages of dialogue. You go girl! ^_^ *hugs* Zofie Audron & Adojan of the Hylden are my brain children. I, of course, belong to myself. ^_^ 

Author's Notes: If you read- review! ^_^ ***Spoilers of **_all_** the LoK games- **_All. When I say all I mean ALL._***** 

Also, the Title quote is based on what Evileen of _The Wiz_ said in her final moments. *bows her head for a few moments in remembrance of Evileen, looks up and starts dancing* 

*sings* 

__

Can't you- _feel _the

__

brand new day?

__

Can't you- _feel _the

__

brand new daaaaaaaay?!

Adojan- So... am I getting into this? 

Syvia- You already are.

Adojan- *looks around at the white space* How about putting me somewhere with actual _scenery_? 

Syvia- All in good time, sweetheart.

"I'm _allergic _to _water_!"

Syvia was falling asleep. This might have been a good thing- as she was tired, but she was also soaking wet, fully clothed, chilled, and had three vampires in her house.

She tucked a few strands of wet hair behind her ear, and shivered. Okay- there was a rational way to deal with this... there had to be... she only had to find it. She sat there and thought rationally... for about a minute.

_F_&*# _rational. I'm cold, I'm wet and those bastards want to drink my blood. So what am I going to do about it?_ That made up her mind. She was going to march straight down there and- and- and then she remembered just what was down there, and decided to wait in the bathroom for a while longer. 

Syvia sat in the bathtub, in an inch of water that was rapidly cooling, and her head sagged slowly forward.

Faustus was leaning against the wall, arms crossed over his chest in annoyance. "Are you done yet?"

Marcus, his hands up in that familiar, yet infinitely odd gesture from the game, turned his head and from between his long fingers, fixed Faustus with a piercing glare. "I don't _know_, Faustus," he said, irony weighing down his words, "is the girl out of the bathroom yet?"

At this response, the long-haired vampire rolled his eyes and went back to staring down the steps. He idly considered leaving to watch Sebastian playing Blood Omen 2... but thirst won over amusement. He wanted some blood, and he didn't feel like going out for it... although if Marcus took any longer-

A hand closed over his ponytail. Faustus grabbed Marcus' wrist, but allowed his face to be pulled close to that of the Master of Charm. "Your thoughts are so loud that I can't focus on the girl. Either think quietly, or go away," Marcus said mildly. 

"Fine," Faustus grated. Marcus released him and began his manipulation once again.

In the bathroom, Syvia was sleeping. She slowly and carefully climbed from the tub and sat down on its edge. Under Marcus' direction, she removed her shoes and socks, her wet sweater, and put her hands to the top button of her jeans. She stopped.

"What is it _now_?" Marcus groaned, turning to the vampire poking him in the shoulder. Before Faustus could speak, they both heard a thud. Having lost the connection with Syvia, Marcus accidentally allowed her to fall forward onto the bathroom floor. Marcus cursed. In a louder and more annoyed tone of voice, so did Syvia. Faustus was smirking as she exclaimed over her practically naked body.

"Oh come now, you didn't expect us to feed while touching wet clothing, did you?" Marcus called reasonably. There was the sound of water sloshing, draining out of the tub, and refilling. The two vampires looked at each other nervously. Marcus hastily reached out to the girl's mind again and cursed.

"What is it?" Faustus murmured. 

"She's thinking of a brick wall."

The long-haired vampire just looked at him. "What?" he asked, supremely confused.

"She's thinking of a brick wall," Marcus said again, clenching a fist. "I can't read her thoughts because she's focusing so constantly on the wall." He quieted as they both heard the slap of wet clothing against equally wet skin. "Syvia- why not dry off, come out and submit? I promise, we shan't even kill you, we'll only drain most of your blood," Marcus called persuasively. 

Faustus gave him a look which plainly and incredulously asked if he were serious. Marcus responded with an 'of course not' face and Faustus smirked. 

"Oh, okay, if you _promise_," Syvia said from the bathroom. The sarcasm was slight, but evident in her tone. 

The vampires grinned to each other as footsteps moved over to the door and it opened. Syvia stepped into the doorway and stood there, smiling. 

The smirks faded from Faustus' lips as he took in the sight of her, fully clothed and dripping wet. Marcus glanced briefly to the beach towel lying across her arm. The girl waited, folding her arms lightly over her chest. 

"Well, Marcus?" Faustus murmured, nudging him.

"What?"

"Aren't you going to charm her?"

"He can't," Syvia grinned widely. "My mind isn't mundane enough to be controlled unless I'm unconscious."

"You have to fall asleep _sometime_," Marcus sneered. 

Syvia looked at him for a long moment- long enough for the vampires to grow suspicious. Did she know something they didn't?

"Bets?" Syvia asked mildly, raising an eyebrow. The Meridian vampires pressed back against the wall, moving out of Syvia's way as she moved into the hall and down the stairs. They followed, three steps behind her, taking pains to avoid the water she dripped on the floor. 

She spared a brief glance at Sebastian, sitting on the floor in front of the television, before walking into the kitchen. Faustus leaned back against the door frame, watching as Syvia pulled out a plastic cup, and took a green bottle from the refrigerator. She filled the glass halfway with ice cubes, which drew a momentary look of curiosity from the vampire. Syvia opened the bottle and poured a radioactive looking yellow liquid into the cup. 

"What is that?" Faustus asked.

"Enough caffeine, sugar, and artificial flavors to kill a small animal."

The master of the Den looked at her strangely. Syvia walked back into the living room, deliberately almost brushing Faustus' arm as she did so. Marcus was leaning against the back of the blue armchair, he looked idly at the girl as she passed.

Syvia stepped up to Sebastian and laid the beach towel on the floor next to him. Sebastian was sitting forward slightly, his cape spread on the floor around him, his eyes intent on the television screen. The Master of the Industrial Quarter had spent the better part of an hour repeatedly allowing videogame Kain to be killed by various people and numerous falls into varying bodies of water, after which he would laugh in sadistic amusement.

Sebastian, although covered head to toe in armor, inched nervously away from Syvia as she sat next to him.

The girl wiped her hands carefully on the towel and took a drink of her strange concoction. Then she held a hand out for the controller.

"Not a chance," his remix voice murmured. 

"You sure?" she replied calmly. 

"Completely."

Syvia took another drink, noticing a small opening in the neck of his plate-covered leather armor. It was at the back of his neck, and had he been sitting up straight, wouldn't have been there at all. Syvia smiled and took another drink, sucking an ice cube into her mouth. She rolled the cube around her tongue, cleaning the soft drink off of it, then took the cube between her fingers.

"That's too bad," she murmured. Sebastian was intent on the game, not really noticing as the girl's hand crept close to the bunched cloth that was just big enough to-

Sebastian jumped up with a shout as the ice cube burned its way down his back. Syvia calmly picked up her controller and began playing.

Faustus shook with laughter, wiping pink tears from his eyes. He reached out without looking and his hand caught Marcus' shoulder, which he leaned against for support. 

Sebastian tore off his cape and breastplate, baring his chest and back, finally freeing himself from the ice cube. Sebastian cast a murderous look at Syvia, and then at Faustus, who was laughing all the harder. Looking into the hallway, he froze at what he saw. 

Faustus paid no heed to that, nor did he pick up on the pleased smile Syvia gave when she turned to see what Sebastian was looking at. Faustus was chortling into the helpful shoulder on which he leaned when suddenly his fingers brushed a few silky strands of hair. His laughter faded as he remembered something... Marcus didn't _have _hair. Faustus' eyes jerked upward and did a quick survey of the face before him. Ivory skin, silver hair, gold eyes.

The vampire smiled tentatively. "Hi, Kain."

=================================

*lol* I love it. ^_^ Reviews?

Cookies to whoever can guess the drink that I never mentioned by name. *smiles*


	15. “Hey, what you do on your own time”

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: I own them. *points to Adojan & Zofia* Myself. *points to herself* And nothing else. 

Author's Notes: The rest of the disclaimer can be found on the preceding chapters.

*Sits in the middle of the white space, rocking back and forth*

Syvia- *singing* Come and see,

while quietly,

I slowly go insane!

Adojan- *looks at his creator* Hmmm... the onset of school is driving her mad. Tsk tsk tsk.

"Hey, what _you_ do on _your own _time-"

The anti-hero's lip curled. Kain reached out quickly, grabbed the other vampire by the throat and lifted him two feet above the floor.

"Faustus," he returned cordially.

Sebastian froze for only an instant at the sight of Kain, Umah and Vorador standing in the hallway. Vorador held Marcus' bound arms, from which the 'charmed' vampire hung, unconscious. And if that hadn't been bad enough, there were three other forms standing beside the first three in a more or less companionable scene. There were two beings with blue skin; one with wings, one that resembled a zombie, and last, but perhaps not least, a human holding a large staff. Threats all around. 

"Why Sebastian," Umah purred, "your musculature is even more impressive without your armor to hide it." 

Kain gave her a look, which Umah returned mischievously.

Sebastian looked down at himself and turned an interesting shade of red before he remembered something- he was outnumbered six to one. 

Doubting it would save him from Kain, Sebastian reached for the first accessible shield, the human. He pulled Syvia to her feet and pressed her close to his chest, one arm wrapped around her neck, the other stretched forward, claws splayed towards his enemies. 

The girl gave a surprised little yelp and dropped her controller, but had nothing on Sebastian, who screamed even louder than before as Syvia's wet sweat-shirt burned his chest. He flung the girl towards the other vampires and ran from the room.

She was still holding her drink. Ninety percent of it was _on _her by this time, but as she was flying through the air, over the blue arm chair and into the hallway, Syvia _really _didn't care. 

Vorador bolted, dropping Marcus as he rushed for the kitchen. To be charitable, he really _was _planning to intercept Sebastian before the berserker vamp could escape, but his larger reason for running was a bit more selfish. He wasn't the biggest fan of water. Umah would have stayed, but Vorador dragged her out of the way as well. 

Kain was a bit preoccupied with bashing Faustus repeatedly into the doorframe, so he wasn't paying attention.

Janos didn't have enough room to maneuver, and Moebius didn't really care, so the girl was pretty lucky, really, that Raziel was not adverse to moisture and remembered that she was a fan. All this happened in about two seconds. Then Syvia hit Raziel's arms and they were both flung backwards by the force of Sebastian's throw. Syvia's head connected with the staircase railing, and she blacked out.

When she woke up again, Syvia was lying on what she assumed (correctly) to be the couch, her dully aching head cradled by a pillow, the beach towel covering her prone body. She opened her eyes and found herself staring up at the cadaverous grin of-

"Moebius?" The girl tried to sit up and was arrested by her throbbing skull. She settled for groaning, planting a hand in the middle of the Time Streamer's face and pushing him away. A large hand grasped her wrist. 

"Now is that any way to thank me?" 

"For what?" she moaned softly.

"For saving your life," he said, sounding injured that he had to remind her. 

"Raziel saved me," she muttered, annoyed. "I may have hit my head, but I remember _that._"

Moebius began to splutter at that and Syvia grinned weakly. A blue hand pulled the Time Guardian out of her line of sight and a pale face, marked with tattoos, took Moebius' place. 

"Just lie back. It may take an hour or so, but you will be completely well before long."

"Umah..." Syvia smiled a bit and held out her hand. "It's nice to meet you."

The vampiress' lips turned up and she took the girl's hand. "Likewise." Syvia looked around carefully as Umah set let go and saw Janos, once again in the rocker, sitting in front of the television. His hands were on the game controller, flicking madly across its black surface. 

The winged vampire was engrossed in the game, and Syvia was mildly astonished to realize this was his first turn at the Playstation. Kain had dibs, as _he _was the main character... so why wasn't he playing? Where was everybody? Moebius sat in the blue recliner, Umah was curled in the armchair, Raziel sat cross-legged on the ottoman. 

Syvia moved gingerly and was surprised by something else-

"I'm dry..." she murmured, running careful fingers over her hair, "but not sticky," she added under her breath. Syvia remembered quite well where her drink had gone.

"A spell, you needn't stay wet." Umah murmured, watching the television. "We can keep the... Stooges," she smirked slightly, "in line..." the smirk grew, "and in chains. Moisture may not burn humans, but prolonged moisture does not serve them well."

Syvia was about to ask where the rest of the Nosgothians were, but she noticed a soft banging and an even softer yelling coming from the basement.

Her brow crinkled in worry. "What's that noise?" Syvia asked quietly. Raziel turned to her, eyes crinkling. 

"Kain, Vorador and the vampires who accosted you are in the basement, becoming acquainted with power tools." He chuckled evilly and the girl thought she heard her father's drill being started, the soft whirring was followed after a few moments, by a scream.

The girl shuddered, but was becoming drowsy again, and despite the cries of pain that echoed from the basement, she was falling asleep. Syvia reached out and managed to catch hold of Raziel's talon. She looked unsteadily up at the Soul Reaver.

"I don't want to go down there and have to see blood all over the place..." she murmured imploringly. "And I _really _don't want to explain it to my parents."

"Don't worry," he chuckled. 

Syvia worried anyway- but fell asleep, followed by the drone of electrical power tools and screaming vampires.

The next time Syvia woke up, she was in the chair, a pillow under her head, her legs stretched out on the ottoman, her towel covering her body. Her head and one arm were draped over the right arm of the chair, so she was looking towards the couch when she opened her eyes. She was facing the couch and-

"Wha?!" The girl jerked away, her back hitting the other side of the chair, staring at Faustus' grinning face. She almost panicked. Then she saw the rope that was wrapped in an almost cartoonish style around the vampire's arms and chest, from the tops of his shoulders to his waist. Syvia glanced at the rest of the couch and saw Marcus, tied in a similar way, snoring, his head resting on Sebastian's shoulder. The Industrial Master didn't look happy about this, or maybe he looked annoyed because Kain was sitting next to him, smirking. Then again, perhaps it was because he was _still_ shirtless. As if Syvia's wondering had prompted him, he began to complain.

"These ropes are chafing me..." he drawled, annoyed.

"Awww, poor widdle Sebastian," Kain said, imitating the drawl, "would you like me to take them off and we can play with the hand saw instead? I found _that _tool to be _particularly _amusing." Kain smiled evilly. "Three interchangeable blades... serrated edges... a good firm handle... never got slippery- despite the blood that covered it."

Everyone shuddered. Sebastian and Faustus looked slightly ill, so, despite the lack of facial features, did Raziel. Vorador was smirking, murmuring about 'the good old days', Moebius echoed him and got a few strange looks for his trouble. Umah, snuggled half on, half off, Kain's lap, had a vague smile on her face, and her hand was running up and down Kain's thigh. Marcus was still snoring and Janos was facing the television, so neither had anything interesting to add. Syvia noticed the entire show and buried her face in her palms.

"I don't even want to know, I don't even want to know..."

===========================

See? No cliffhanger! Aren't you proud of me? ^_^ Next- Where everyone was while I almost became vamp chow... most likely... probably... even though things could change.

Adojan- Am I going to end up in this or not?

Syvia- I'm really not sure at this point.

Adojan- *shrugs* I wouldn't mind escaping the humiliation everyone seems to suffer in this fic. 


	16. Get a room!

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: I own them. *points to Adojan & Zofia* Myself. *points to herself* And nothing else. 

Author's Notes: The rest of the disclaimer can be found on the preceding chapters. :-p

Has anyone seen a pattern yet? I write better while on vacation. *sighs* Finally got back to this. We'll see how well I can keep up my writing.

*a cute little girl goes running across the white space, giggling hysterically* Hey! This is a PG-13 fic and you're only two! *Syvia goes running after her niece. Adojan watches with a slight grin on his face.*

Get a room!

"Why is Faustus still here?" Sebastian asked irritably. The long-haired vampire shot a dirty look at the other Guardian, but didn't say anything. 

"What makes you ask?" Vorador, the only one to pay any attention to him, replied.

"He's dead in the game. I had thought when you died in the game, you had to leave this world, and by that assessment, Marcus would be gone as well-"

"No," Moebius cut him off.

"And how would you know?" Sebastian asked him.

"I am the all-seeing Moebius," he answered grandly. "I look into the streams of time and see futures that have not yet come to pass! I-" Raziel hit him upside the head.

"Didn't see that though, did you?" the Soul Reaver chuckled. Moebius gritted his teeth and lifted his staff threateningly.

"Like I said before," Syvia said tiredly as she manipulated the controller, "if you're going to do that, do it outside." 

"Do what?" Raziel asked innocently. Syvia turned to look at him just as Moebius returned the hit. The snake staff clunked against the back of Raziel's head. The violet crystal began to flash as the wraith blade flared, blue and violet on the Soul Reaver's arm. 

"That," Syvia responded. She pointed towards the kitchen. "Outside." 

Moebius glared at the girl for a moment, but caught Vorador and Janos' menacing looks. He stood and turned fuming, towards the kitchen, followed by Raziel. There was the sound of a door opening, then closing, and then muffled shouts and the sounds of a fight. Faustus pouted.

"I wanted to watch..." he whined. 

"Oh shut up," Sebastian snapped. He was too busy leaning away from Kain and Umah- who were making out on the end of the couch- to put up with Faustus' complaints. Sandwiched between the couple and the still snoring Marcus, he was by far the most unhappy person in the room. The half-naked vampire shoved Marcus in the side, trying to move him over. "Wake up, damn you! Vampires don't truly sleep and you're taking up more than your fair share of the couch!"

"He won't wake," Vorador remarked.

"Why not?" Sebastian asked, exasperated. 

"We find him annoying and I'd rather not have my mind read, thank you very much," Kain said as Umah nibbled on his ear. "Ow!" She had bit him. "Oh, _darling_..." he purred teasingly. Umah chuckled low in her throat as she sucked the small wound. Sebastian turned away from them with a panicked expression on his face.

"Someone give me a new seat before the foreplay begins!"

Syvia gave the controller to Vorador and looked on in amazement as he easily killed a monster that had been giving her trouble. It was only then that she turned to Sebastian. She looked at the couple. Her eyebrows rose. Umah was laying back on the arm of the couch, her precarious location made only a bit safer by the fact that Kain's lower body was pinning hers to the spot and the end table was right beside them. Her right leg was wrapped around Kain's waist, her left had shoved the table lamp into the corner of the table. Kain's clawed fingers were busy with the clasps on her shoulder armor.

"They aren't already _on _the foreplay?" Syvia asked wryly, smirking as Umah's violet cape fell over Sebastian's head. The vampire shook it off, then shook his head at her, his eyes wide, frantic.

"Kain has a tendency to include innocent," Faustus paused for a moment and considered that word, "... or otherwise, bystanders in his sexual encounters." The long-haired vampire smirked. "And he's always had a soft spot for Sebastian." His smirk turned wider, "Or would that be a _hard _spot?" he mused.

Syvia looked timidly over at the two vampires and said, "Uh... wouldn't you be more comfortable on a bed?"

"No, we're fine," Umah answered distractedly, intent on undoing Kain's belt.

"Umah," Vorador said in a chiding tone. 

The vampiress groaned, aggravated, and they disappeared in a flash of purple light.

"Thank you," Sebastian breathed, sitting back on the couch. There was a thump from downstairs and loud, husky laughter. Syvia raised her eyebrows at the idea of the two vampires going at it on the cold basement floor and wondered why they'd moved downstairs. Suddenly, quite loudly, there was the sound of the electric drill and a high-pitched squeal of delight... which sounded like Kain.

"I'm too young for this," Syvia muttered, clamping a pillow over her ears. 

"Well _of course _you're too young for this. _I'm _too young for this!" Faustus muttered, wishing he could plug _his _ears. Janos took the remote control and turned up the television volume. Video game Kain's laughter blended in with that of visiting Kain and they all relaxed a bit.

"So, what happened to you guys while the Stooge Trio tried to eat me?" Syvia asked as Vorador dispatched some videogame Glyph Knights. 

As one, Vorador and Janos pointed at Moebius, who took that very moment to come limping back into the room with a broken staff and a black eye. 

He glared, then winced as the glare aggravated his eye. "What are you blaming me for _this _time?"

"What does it matter?" Raziel asked, moving around him. "Everything is your fault anyway."

"Me, alone with them," Syvia jerked a thumb at the Sarafan Lord's vampiric guardians. 

"Ah," Raziel nodded once. "Well, Moebius begins the transport spell that brings us here every night after you begin to play. He seemed interested in seeing how long you could hold out against the vampires and although Kain and I tried to negotiate with him (there was a spear involved) we could do nothing until Vorador appeared with Janos." He looked curiously at Syvia's furious expression. "But you seemed to be doing well by yourself...."

Moebius looked at her innocently. "What?" He took back his seat. 

Syvia had taken two steps towards the Time Streamer before Raziel appropriated the lamp that appeared almost magically in her hand and held the girl back. Moebius flinched, but quickly regained composure. He looked at Raziel curiously.

"As amusing as the fight would be, I want to watch the game." He gently replaced the lamp and continued to grasp the quietly swearing girl by the back of her sweat shirt, his attention on the video game. Faustus was pouting again; another fight stopped before anything interesting happened. Raziel took a seat on the ottoman, still restraining the human. Eventually her energy wore down and she plopped down beside his feet, panting.

"Finished?" the Soul Reaver asked idly. She nodded and he let her go.

Then, for no apparent reason, Sebastian began to laugh evilly. "Fools!" he shouted. "The time of our release is at hand! Soon you shall bow down before us and worship us as gods!" Everyone looked at the half-naked vampire curiously.

"Ooh! Wasn't that from Kain's one pre-battle speech?" Faustus grinned. "What was it now... I'm sure I can remember the city...."

"The Sarafan Lord will be here in moments!" Sebastian cried happily. 

Vorador continued playing, guiding videogame Kain to Umah's prison cell. "Ohhhh, yes, I'd forgotten that part," he murmured. 

"So what?" Moebius rolled his eyes. "He allows Kain to kill the three of you in the game- he can't be _that _worried about your welfare."

"You're one to talk, Moebius." Vorador smirked, fighting a Glyph Knight. "You let _twelve _people die in SR2."

"That's a completely different situation!" Moebius protested. Syvia and Raziel scoffed in unison.

"He's here," Janos broke into the conversation.

Vorador jumped, surprised, as the Ancient sprang to his feet, wings flaring in anger. "...Sire? I cannot see the television with your-"

"Hylden bastard," Janos growled softly at the game room archway. Syvia looked and saw a pair of eerily burning green lights coming from the darkened room.

"Filthy vampire," a voice growled back. Janos rushed into the room and the beating of wings mingled with several crashes and the sound of breakable things being hurled against the walls. 

The human girl sighed, climbed back into her chair, and watched as videogame Kain and Umah teleported back to Sanctuary.

==============================================

Hi people! Finally got inspiration and the drive to do this. ^_^ Review please. :-D

*sighs and goes back to the long haul that is Chapter ten of Restoring Balance*


	17. Helpless Bystanders

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: I own them. *points to Adojan & Zofia* Myself. *points to herself* And nothing else. 

Author's Notes: The rest of the disclaimer can be found on the preceding chapters. 

Syvia- ...Okay, welcome aboard, Addy-me-boy.

Adojan- Uh-huh. *sighs* Okay, what kind of entrance will I be making?

Syvia- An embarrassing one. *evil grin*

Adojan- *knowing his creator's mind too well, suddenly realizes where he's about to end up* No! NO! *he disappears*

Helpless Bystanders

Sebastian bounced up and down happily, cheering for the Sarafan Lord, while Faustus, just to be contrary, rooted for Janos. During one bounce, Marcus' head lifted from his shoulder long enough for the middle vampire to sit up, then he slowly leaned to the other side and laid his head on Faustus' shoulder. Faustus irritably bounced his shoulder, sending Marcus' head aloft once again. 

The company jumped as they heard a scream that didn't come from Janos, or the Sarafan Lord. It originated from the basement, yet it didn't sound like Kain, although the voice was masculine. 

"No! No- take your hands off me- both of you!" Another shout. "Get your hand off my ass!" There was the sound of footsteps pounding the concrete... then the stairs. Syvia looked pale.

"I know that voice..." she murmured. The girl scrambled out of the chair, lifted Faustus' legs and deposited them on the ottoman beside Raziel. She dropped into the gap between the enormous footstool and the couch, hidden from sight. Raziel and Moebius glanced at her curiously, then turned as a pale, winged figure stormed in from the hall, a pair of baggy trousers half-undone around his waist and a violet legging wrapped around one of the ebony horns that curled around his head. 

"I am _not _amused," he said in a soft, dangerously calm voice. Raziel's eyes were wide. 

"Do I know you?" the Soul Reaver asked, eyeing the leathery wings that extended from the being's back. 

Green eyes flared briefly at him. "No, you don't. Where's the human?"

"Calm down, Adojan," Moebius rolled his eyes.

"Moebius?" the Hylden/vampire's eyes shifted to the Time Streamer, then he stopped entirely and looked around the room. His eye-ridge lifted slowly. Adojan turned and looked into the dining room. His expression was simply confused as he looked away from Janos and the Hylden General, fighting in the far room, to Vorador, and last, to the three vampires on the couch and Raziel on the ottoman. "What is this?"

Several vampires shrugged. "We're just here for a laugh," Faustus grinned, crossing his ankles on the footstool. "Kain and Umah are here for sex, but you found that out on your own." 

That reminded Adojan of the girl he had to mutilate. He clenched his thin talons, wings twitching angrily. "Come out, Syvia- the longer you hide, the angrier I'll be when I finally get to you!"

"That sounds like a threat Marcus would use..." Sebastian noted, shouldering the _still _sleeping vampire over to Faustus. 

"Oh, Adojan, why not just leave the girl alone?" Moebius asked blandly. 

"I don't need your advice, Time Streamer," the Hylden/vampire spat, looking around.

"I'm insulted!" Moebius cried, looking about with wide eyes. "Does _everyone _in here have a grudge against me?!" Simultaneously, six people answered 'yes', Syvia answering only in her mind, as she did not want to call attention to herself. Moebius turned to Sebastian and Faustus. "You've only known me for three hours!" 

Sebastian looked at him, and completely serious said, "That's all it takes."

By then, Adojan had crept around the ottoman and caught sight of a familiar, dark-haired form. He seized the girl by her sweatshirt and pulled her out of the little hiding spot. The mutated Hylden grinned evilly, holding her up a foot off the floor, level with his eyes. "So... here we are..."

"Oh come on, Adojan, I've been having a really bad couple of days-" Syvia whimpered.

"You're the one who began playing the game, sweetling-"

"I didn't have anything to do with your appearance! You aren't even from this _time _period!"

"Be that as it may, I demand recompense for the humiliation you've subjected me to."

"Adojan-" Moebius cautioned. 

"I'm not planning to kill her, _dad_," the Hylden cut him off, rolling his eyes like a scolded adolescent. Adojan set the girl on the floor and, with a hand on her arm, dragged her into the hallway. They heard the basement door open and Syvia's pleading voice. One of the characters present might have been concerned, if not for the sudden revelation presented to them. 

"You're Adojan's father?" Raziel asked, glowing eyes wide.

"Don't be ridiculous," Moebius answered, "he was just being sarcastic." The Nosgothians relaxed. "I'm not his father, Raziel. _You _are."

"Oh, that's a different.... _What_?!" Then an explosion lit the game room, briefly illuminating the Sarafan Lord as he hit the wall that divided the game room from the kitchen. In the sudden silence, Syvia could be heard, crying out frantically. It didn't last, however, as Adojan's voice suddenly drowned out her screams with his own. Syvia appeared not long after, pulled her blanket close and wrapped it over her head, hiding. In the game room, the fight began again.

"What's wrong?" Raziel asked her. 

"I'm blind... oh God, my virgin eyes..." Syvia shuddered, making the bundle of blankets tremble.

"...I most definitely do not want to know," Raziel murmured, turning back to the television.

"You're such a prude, Raziel," Vorador smirked, navigating videogame Kain into the beginning of the Canyons chapter. "Kain and Umah's sessions are quite tame compared to the tumbles I've taken with my brides in the past." Raziel rubbed his temples with one clawed hand. "Why, I could tell you stories-"

"No! No, that is quite all right, Vorador," the Soul Reaver assured him.

"Hell, _I _could tell you stories just as easily," Faustus smirked. 

"I _really _don't care to know."

"For example, there was one time when the female vampires in Kain's army-" Faustus bit back the rest of the sentence when Raziel buried a hand in the young vampire's long hair and pulled backwards, exposing Faustus' neck. 

"I _really_ don't want to _know_... _thank _you," Raziel said.

"Okay," Faustus winced. There was another sudden silence from the game room, and the sound of two people breathing heavily.

"Five minute break?" asked the Sarafan Lord.

"Yeah- sounds good," Janos returned quickly.

Raziel let go of the vampire guardian, who grimaced, and stuck his tongue out at the Soul Reaver after he'd turned around. 

Sebastian chuckled. "If I weren't tied up right now, I'd shake your hand for that...or...hoof?" he asked, smirking at Raziel's hand.

Adojan's horrified scream echoed from the basement again, a second one followed, which ended in a moan. Syvia poked her head out of the blanket, casting a wide-eyed and vaguely frightened look at the basement door. Nobody cared.

"Gods, fledglings today," Raziel was muttering. "No respect for an elder vampire..."

"Hey, I'm _before _your time, mister flaming sword!" Faustus shouted.

"Maybe, but I'm older than you'll _ever _be!" Raziel retorted.

There was a loud, pain-filled shout from the basement and an explosion, then an echoing explosion from the game room. Janos finally walked back into the living room, looking dignified, despite the sooty cast to his features and the smoke curling from his ash-covered hair. He made himself comfortable in his usual seat.

"I won," the Ancient smiled quietly.

"So, what, he's dead?" Vorador asked, shifting to keep the television in sight as Janos walked in front of it to get to his chair.

"No, unconscious, and likely to have a _demon _of a headache when he wakes up."

Adojan took that moment to slam the basement door and walk into the room, his left wing hanging at an awkward angle and a slight bulge beneath his pants.

Janos sat down and winced at the look of the Adojan's wing, then looked confusedly at the Hylden. "Do I know you?"

"No, you don't," Adojan answered. He stalked over to the couch, picked up the sleeping Marcus and tossed him into a corner of the room. Marcus landed behind an end table with a thud and began to snore. Adojan climbed onto the back of the couch, sat down and crossed his legs primly. He folded his arms in front of his chest and waited for his wing to mend.

Kain and Umah emerged from the hallway soon afterwards, looking rumpled and just as sooty as Janos. Vorador looked over at them and raised an eye ridge. By Umah's disgruntled expression, and Kain's sheepish one, it was obvious something had gone awry. "What happened?" 

"Kain rolled onto one of Adojan's wings and broke it... in retaliation- Adojan blew up the basement." She took a seat beside Raziel on the ottoman. "It killed the mood."

"My heartfelt apologies," Kain muttered at Adojan.

"Uh-huh," the hybrid responded, unconvinced. Kain took his seat by Sebastian and sat, pouting. For several minutes, they all sat there in silence, watching the television. Then Moebius, who had fallen asleep long ago, began snoring in time with Marcus. The Soul Reaver looked first at the vampire, then at the Time Streamer, an evil light in his eyes. 

============================

Adojan- You can't _ever _be nice to me, can you?!

Syvia- *shrugs* I can when you're a chibi.

Adojan- *crosses his arms over his chest* Not gonna happen, then.

Syvia- Oh really? *turns him into a chibi*

Chibi Adojan- No, it's not! *hears the squeaky pitch of his voice, looks down at his tiny-little body* *gasps* I don't wanna be a chibi! *cries... loudly*

Syvia- Aww, honey, it's gonna be okay.

C Adojan- No it's not! I'm suffering from mental angst in one fic and I'm being humiliated in this one! *cries, hugs Syvia's leg*

*Syvia picks him up and cuddles, murmuring 'there there' noises. Chibi Adojan curls his arms around her neck, wailing.*

Reviews?


	18. And this one time, at band camp

Copyright © 2002 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: I own them. *points to Adojan & Zofia* Myself. *points to herself* And nothing else. (Specifically, in this chapter, the title is that well-known quote from _American Pie_.)

Author's Notes: The rest of the disclaimer can be found on preceding chapters. 

Thanks go out to Ranmyaku, as always, for beta reading the fic & for being such a good listener. ;-D

Syvia- *cuddling a sleeping Chibi Adojan* *softly* Later on he'll regard these chapters as therapy... it's the only place he can get me back for the hell I'm put him through in Restoring Balance. *smirks*

C Adojan- *mutters & turns in his sleep*

Syvia- *hums a lullaby*

..........................................."And this one time- at band camp..."......................................

Raziel seemed to smirk. "That color looks lovely on him," he said, considering the purple bruise that made Moebius' eye stand out in stark contrast from the rest of his face. There was an evil glint in one of Raziel's burning eyes as he rose from the ottoman and leisurely stalked out of the room. Syvia gave him a sidelong glance as he bounded up the stairs, wondering if she should go and monitor his behavior. 

Umah had abandoned her annoyance, as well as the subject of it, in favor of less smutty pursuits, namely putting her clothing back _on_. She brushed her clothing vigorously, ridding the violet material of dust and tisking over the spots of blood on the underside of the cape spread over her lap. She squinted at the thick cloth and began to pick at the stains with a sharp black nail. Eventually the vampiress gave up with a growl and threw the cape over her shoulder, nearly hitting Sebastian in the face. Kain watched as she straightened her clothing, replaced the armor on her shoulder, and proceeded to struggle with the clasps. The look on the silver-haired vampire's face was one of growing disappointment- almost like a child watching his favorite blanket being put in the washer; he knew he'd get it back at some point... but he wanted it _now_.

"Umah," he murmured, caressing her plaited hair with his talons, "angel-fangs...." The Blood Omen vampires snickered at this as the vampiress pulled her black and violet tresses from Kain's grasp with a neat little twist of her head. Kain sat behind her and tried again, running his hands over her shoulders and down towards her elbows. "My dearest little blood-bunny..."

Syvia slumped down into her blanket, effectively hiding her face and the smile that had appeared on it. Hearing vampiric pet names... or, Kain's version of them, anyway- was almost amusing enough to make up for the scene downstairs.

Umah paid no attention to Kain but continued to fix her armor, which, after careful inspection, had been found to have dents and more than one loose fastening. The vampiress sighed in annoyance, both at the constant nagging of her lover and the dented armor, and threw the latter on the floor. She leaned down to put on her armored boots, and noticed as Kain rubbed a hand up her thigh, that her leg was bare. 

"That was nine minutes and forty-six seconds," Faustus chuckled to Sebastian. "Pay up!"

"Oh, yes," the _still _bare-chested vampire drawled, glaring at the other. "Just let me get my wallet..." he turned to Syvia, "if you would be so kind as to untie me?" 

The girl's eyebrows rose. "What are you talking about?"

"Sebastian bet that it would take ten minutes for anyone to notice where Umah's stocking had gone. I said it wouldn't take so long, and I won," he turned to Sebastian again, "so pay up."

Umah had finally sighted her missing bit of clothing, wrapped around Adojan's horn, and politely asked for it back. The hybrid looked at her, startled, then touched his head carefully, and looked even more startled when he located the bit of cloth in question, amazed that it was there. 

"How long was that hanging there?" he muttered, flushing slightly.

"For roughly half of an hour," Sebastian muttered. "I only wish I had made the bet when I first saw it." Faustus smirked up at the hybrid.

Umah rolled the stocking, then drew it slowly up her pale leg as Kain looked on, horrified. "Darling, I _said _I was sorry... I had hoped that we would finish..." he leered at her suggestively.

The vampiress smiled and ran her fingertips over the line of his jaw. Then, very sweetly, she said, "Finish _yourself_." Smirks flitted around the room, all except for the unconscious visitors, Janos and Vorador, who were arguing their way through a puzzle in the Industrial Quarter section of the game, which required the use of the Charm gift. 

"No, no," Janos' heavily accented voice was saying. "Charm the man in the other room and make him turn the lever."

To which Vorador replied, "I know how the gift works, sire- I have it myself, you know."

Umah had finished putting on her boots and was muttering something to Kain that Syvia couldn't hear. Whatever it was- it made Kain's cheeks go pink. Sebastian and Adojan smirked lewdly and Faustus uttered what sounded suspiciously like a giggle. Syvia's gaze fixed on Kain, wondering what Umah had said- why it made Kain go calmly back to his seat, and why he was sitting there now, thinking to himself. The silence grew. So did a peculiar sort of tension that didn't really speak of violence so much as... something else. Something that made Sebastian uncomfortable enough that he began to scoot closer to Adojan's legs- away from Kain. Syvia realized she wasn't going to get any answers from anyone and wondered what Raziel was up to... and whether she should go stop whatever it was.

The girl grimaced. After the events of the last hour she just wasn't that brave. As it turned out, she didn't have to wait. The vampire-wraith in question bounded down the stairs with a small grey bag in hand, a squishy little thing with a zipper on the top from one end to the other and patterned with faded pink flowers. Syvia recognized it instantly. It was her mother's make-up bag. _Now what the hell would he want with- _her jaw dropped as Raziel gently tucked the sleeping Time Streamer under his arm and traipsed out into the game room. 

There was the sound of creaking springs- Raziel must have set Moebius on the sofa- and then a pause. A softly malicious chuckle drifted out of the darkened room- then a low moan; the Sarafan Lord- and the springs creaking again. Syvia sighed and buried herself in her blanket- unable to keep from wondering what- or who, the villains would blow up after seeing themselves... the girl shuddered.

Sebastian was still inching away from Kain- and not going very far, as Adojan had his hand on the younger vampire's shoulder and was strong enough to keep him from moving. "What _is _your problem?" the hybrid finally asked.

"He's got that _look _on his face," he whispered. There was no need to be more specific- it was _that _look- the look that meant Kain was about to jump on someone; either to initiate foreplay or tear their throat out. Adojan was merciful to the once again frantic vampire and they both moved closer to Faustus. Syvia noticed that Adojan didn't offer to trade seats. His generosity went only so far.

Umah had finally begun to wonder what Raziel was doing and wandered into the game room. It was more than a little odd to see nothing but their eyes in the darkness. Umah's were a pair of green-gold disks, reflecting the meager light flickering around the living room, and Raziel's like gas flames in shuttered candleholders. Parts of their conversation drifted out to the ones seated in the living room. 

"No, no," Umah was saying. "That only goes on eyelids. Besides, this one would look much better with the Time Streamer's complexion."

A pause, then Raziel saying, "You're very good at this...."

"It _is _more of a woman's activity," she answered frankly. 

Kain sighed as he finally realized he would not be getting her attention again tonight, and walked towards the basement door. The power drill started up soon after and without breaking the conversation, Janos snagged the remote control from a table and raised the television volume.

"Umah told him to go blow himself," Sebastian informed the girl. Syvia turned quickly and looked at him, eyebrows raised. "And meant it literally."

"No way... vampires _aren't _that flexible," she answered flatly. Faustus cleared his throat, and wiggled his foot (which was presently hooked behind his neck) at her. Syvia turned her face away. "Okay, now _that _was just creepy."

"Besides," Sebastian continued, reclaiming a large portion of the couch, "even if he weren't, there are other ways."

Syvia didn't ask, but the frequent glances she shot at him betrayed her curiosity.

"_This _one for the Sarafan Lord?" Umah asked, her voice loud with disbelief. "One of mine would look much better; the violet will match with his loincloth and bring out the green in his eyes."

"No color in the world could _hide _the green in his eyes," Raziel pointed out. "But I had planned to _embarrass _them by putting these substances on their faces."

"Few men are secure enough in their masculinity to accept the fact that makeup allows them to look pretty. If we can do that it will be just embarrassing to them as a badly done makeover."

"That," Sebastian said.

Syvia brought her attention back to the young vampire. "'That' what?"

Sebastian pointed his chin in the direction of the television screen and videogame Kain, who was doing the familiar long-distance sucking of blood... from a body that jerked up and down as liquid tumbled out of a large back wound and through the air to his mouth.

Suddenly she got it. The young vampires watched Syvia's eyes narrow as she processed that idea, and even got a mental visual. Her expression was one of disgust and the girl said once, decisively, "Ew."

================================================

Syvia- *still rocking chibi Adojan* Sheesh... if I get any worse with the innuendo, I'll have to up the rating. *grimaces*

Review please!


	19. Reality Bites

Copyright © 2003 by Syvia (Aka Rebecca K. Friedrick). All Rights Reserved.

Disclaimer: I own them. *points to Adojan & Zofia* Myself. *points to herself* And nothing else.

Author's Notes: The rest of the disclaimer can be found on preceding chapters. 

My beta, Ranmyaku, has my gratitude, as always. 

Syvia- *turns Chibi Adojan back into regular Adojan* Okay, I'm dipping into that little box of 'scenes that were bound to happen' now. If you hang around vampires long enough- even ooc ones.... *shrugs*

Adojan- *evil grin* I think I'm gonna enjoy this chapter....

Syvia- *grimaces* I hate it when you smile like that. 

Hmm... I think I should give kudos to VladimirsAngel here. I can't remember if I was thinking of her _Urban Nosgothic _when I wrote this chapter longhand- but I can definitely see where I took inspiration from her work. ^_^ Some of the scenes you wrote just stuck in my brain, hon, and I don't think I can give you a better compliment than that.

As for the seriousness of part of the chapter... well, the story was kind of due for another. The last really serious chapter was that one with the Unspoken showing up, and that was a while ago.

..........................................................Reality Bites...........................................................

Syvia grimaced, shaking her head in disgust as the vampires on her couch snickered. Adojan, bored by the conversation, reached over and snagged Marcus by the back of his anti-priest robes. Without an explanation- none was needed- he walked off into the game room. The sofa springs creaked gently.

"Ah, another fine gentleman for the free makeover sessions?" Raziel chuckled darkly. 

Umah sighed. "It's such a pity none of them have hair." The Soul Reaver's laughter broke out in full force at that. Adojan came back into the living room, passing Vorador, who was trying to kill Sebastian for the third time.

"Vorador-" Janos motioned for the green-skinned vampire to hand him the game controller.

"Sire, stop trying to help me and let me do it!"

"Use the Rage skill to knock him into the mist."

"I'm _trying_!"

"Do you know," Sebastian muttered, "I find this somewhat odd...." The usually caped vampire watched his videogame self knock Kain's videogame self across the room. Adojan seemed to ignore him as he reclaimed his seat. Faustus smirked and also watched the television. 

"Is it seeing yourself actually defeat Kain, or that they so accurately rendered your voice?"

Sebastian glared at him and refrained from answering, instead, he reached out casually and gave Faustus a jaw-breaking right hook. Syvia jerked out of her chair with a yelp at this new development. Sebastian easily shrugged off the previously restraining bonds. Janos and Vorador were so engrossed in killing videogame Sebastian that they failed to notice the other one stand and run one razor sharp claw over the ropes holding Faustus. Sebastian turned to Adojan and shook his cloven hand.

"Grateful for the help, old boy."

The hybrid smirked. "Bring me back something nice."

The two young vampires, after picking up Sebastian's armor, opened the front door and walked off into the night. The parting leer Faustus gave her finally broke Syvia out of her shock. The girl turned to get help, and found herself trapped as a pale, cloven hand wrapped around her mouth. 

_God, vampires really are single-minded._ There was no help from any quarter, each one was too busy with what they were doing. Vorador and Janos had finally beaten Sebastian and were watching the FMV unfold on television. From the sounds coming out of the game room, Umah and Raziel were finished with the makeovers and busy congratulating each other on a job well done. The power drill had been turned off long ago, but there were still odd noises coming from the basement. Syvia had never been one to believe in the basement monster. The closet monster was another story- but had disappeared long ago, with all the other childhood phobias that people eventually grow out of. This monster hadn't come out of any closet, couldn't be banished as soon as one turned on the light, and it was carrying her upstairs.

Adojan released her just inside the attic doorway. The girl scrambled up the rest of the stairs, flicking on the lights once she had gotten into the main room. A masculine voice chuckled softly and the lights clicked off once again. Syvia clenched her teeth and turned the light on again from upstairs, and Adojan retaliated by clicking the switch on the stairwell. 

"Stop doing that!" she screamed. 

"Very well," he purred. There was the sound of blunt objects slamming into the wall, then a brief crackling of electricity. The light bulb flickered briefly and winked out. The girl sucked in a breath, flicked the switch on and off a few times. Nothing. She was upstairs in the chill silence of the attic with an entire floor between her and anyone who might have been sympathetic to her problem. Syvia was alone with only Adojan's burning green eyes for company. The girl couldn't see his face, but she knew him well enough to know he was smiling.

"Alone at last."

"God, Adojan- you don't want to do this!"

"What don't I want to do?" The eyes started coming closer. Syvia backed away, eventually coming up against the old trundle bed near the far wall. 

"What ever you're about to do- rip my arms off, burn me up with your magic," her voice took on a shrill pitch as the hybrid pressed himself against her. "Flay me alive," she continued, whispering now, "drink my blood-" Adojan took her neck firmly in one hand and lowered his face to it.

"Yes, why thank you for the invitation."

"Zofia won't like it!" she babbled, panicking.

"Zofia wouldn't like several things I've done as a vampire, what's one more?" and his teeth sank into her throat.

Syvia gasped, because she'd never really been one to scream, and her hands scrabbled over his shoulders in an effort to do something- hold on to something instead of hang there, limply, as she began to get dizzy. It had been inevitable, hadn't it? Walk around a house with vampires long enough and at some point, you were going to be bitten- she wasn't exactly surprised at this, still- who ever truly expects, or can prepare, to die? 

Adojan had removed his fangs. Now his lips were fixed over the throbbing wound to keep any blood from escaping. He wasn't actually sucking her blood. He was drinking it rightly enough, but only as much as was seeping out by itself. More tears escaped as Syvia realized he was going to kill her slowly- maybe he hadn't made the wound that bad- maybe if he hadn't been planning to drink all her blood, she would be able to bandage it and it would heal without stitches. She wouldn't have the chance to find out.

His hands were loose on her body now, but Syvia's limbs felt too heavy to move- to attempt a struggle. Despair overcame her as she grew dizzy. So this was how she would die...

The hybrid lifted his head, licked the blood from his lips as he looked at her. The wound's pain dulled to an odd, slow burn. Syvia was suddenly aware of her own sobbing.

Adojan smiled and held her, resting his cheek on her hair. "This sound you're making now," he murmured. "That is the sound of absolute hopelessness." His voice was caressingly soft. "That is what I wanted to hear." He drew away and looked at her expression, painful confusion in the darkness.

"What?" she whispered. "I don't-"

"Payback, my dear, is a bitch with sharp teeth and a wickedly long stride. But sometimes she doesn't need to rip out your throat. Sometimes all she wants is to chase you." He slapped her on the ass and pushed her not-unkindly towards the stairs. "Now clean yourself up and go watch the game."

Syvia turned and just stood there, not trusting him. Adojan rolled his eyes. "When I told Moebius I wasn't going to kill you, I was being truthful." 

She looked at the vampire who was now perfectly congenial and happier than he had been the rest of the night. Syvia realized that the enmity was gone, and wouldn't be returning any time soon. "You are one sick asshole," she murmured.

He winked. "And proud of it."

Syvia turned, controlling her breathing with an effort, and walked down the stairs.

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What was that about, you ask? *shrugs* I'm really not sure.

Drop a review in the box on your way out, please. ^_^

Oh, and one more thing.

HAPPY NEW YEAR'S!


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